Writer: Karl Bollers
Artists: Randy Green and Rick Ketcham
Publisher: Marvel/Tsunami
I have a pretty good feeling that Emma Frost will go down as the surprise hit of 2003. Sales may be high mainly due to Greg Horn’s ultra-sexy cover depictions of Emma, but the story underneath the cover is what drives me to this book each month. The cliché of, “Never judge a book by its cover” applies more to Emma Frost than most.
Even though the story may sound unadorned on paper, it’s less predictable than you think. Coming into this issue, the reader may expect the ongoing headaches continuing jealousy of Emma’s classmates, although Karl Bollers finds a quick way for this to depart. And as Emma kisses her teacher, the reader’s first instincts are changed when the teacher regrets Emma’s move, even though his thoughts say otherwise. Mr. Bollers has scripted a highly entertaining coming-of-age story with Emma, as a basic sense of continuity is preserved with Emma wanting to be a teacher. I certainly enjoy it as a longtime X-Men reader (well, at least I used to be), and newcomers to the character(s) will like it as well.
This would also be an effective All Ages story, and the creative teams seems like they’re forced to justify the PSR+ rating with unneeded risqué poses and occasional strong language. Emma Frost is generally not written as a mature readers title (at least, not yet), and would be much better marketed to an All Ages audience.
The ending to this week’s effort was also a bit contrived. There’s no doubt that Winston Frost is a powerful man, but it seems a bit unlikely that he would go to such lengths to prove something that he could just take care of with money. It adds to the sinister side of the character, but that side has already been thoroughly developed, and the camera scheme came off a bit too exceeding for a shrewd and concise business man.
The cartoonish tint of the art works in this case, for there is no need for extreme detail and realism. Randy Green’s work is not overly loud, and is covered simple enough to fit the narrative. Even though Greg Horn’s covers may be a bit much, they obviously contribute to the book’s sales (sex sells), and they are done very artistically well.
Try Emma Frost if you’re looking for an unlikely alternative. It’s very entertaining and well paced, and satisfies the reader for a week’s effort.
Note: I had originally credited Randy Green with inking Uncanny X-Men, when it was actually DAN Green. I regret the error.
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