Comics / Comic Reviews / DC Comics

Garth Ennis: The Midnighter #4

By Leroy Douresseaux
April 29, 2007 - 10:18

The Midnighter #4 finds the titular hero in Germany, April 1945 – the last days of Nazi Germany.  Coerced into going back in time to kill Adolf Hitler, Midnighter seems to be just a few doorsteps away from the Fuhrer’s bunker.  After meeting members of Hitler’s Youth, Junior Division, however, he may not have the stomach for stomping some Nazi asses.

The addition of Peter Snejbjerg as the fill-in artist may or may not have been a deliberate choice, but his pencils (recalling Alan Davis by way of the Eisner-Iger shop) are correct for this offbeat tale.  Gone is the trademark ultra-violence (for the most part), which Garth Ennis replaces with a tale that recognizes that even well-thought out force is hopeless against the dull ignorance, willful stupidity, and the general pathetic nature of a humanity hungry to devour itself.

Known for his cool, brutal fight comics, Ennis has a cynical view of humanity, but it’s a view taken in by a loving eye for frailty.  Subtle, deadpan, and almost winsome, Ennis can plumb the bloody depths with the kind of grace his DC/Marvel contemporaries can’t do.

7/10

 

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12