Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: NBA legend, creator of the Skyhook and Comic Book Writer
Everyone knows who Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is. He’s an NBA Hall-of-Famer who is the best scorer in the history of basketball. An icon. Interestingly, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was also a student of Bruce Lee’s back in the day. Also another icon.
Either one of those achievements is amazing. Together, they catapult Jabbar to the status of one of the coolest dudes on the planet. So you can imagine my surprise to find his name atop a comic book as the lead writer for a new title from Titan Comics.
In 2015, Jabbar released a novel based on Mycroft Holmes, the brother of the legendary fictional detective, Sherlock Holmes. This work gained enough acclaim that Titan Comics optioned it for a mini-series.
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I’ll admit that having a teaser such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar made me take a second look at the offering, and I’m pleased that I did. This was a really strong kickoff to the mini-series.
Well-written with exceptional artwork made this an easy read and left me ready for the next issue. Cassara’s fairly tight pencils reflected the feel of Victorian England and also had a wide viewpoint that allowed the reader to gain a sense of detail that close-up panels might not afford. The color palette moved from antique warmth to rainy cool.
Jabbar and Obstfeld work up an easily flowing script for the first issue that sets up a story called The Apocalypse Handbook. Set in 1874, the story follows the brilliant, self-centered and obnoxious Mycroft Holmes on a particular adventure throughout London all the while sharpening his wit on his brother, his Oxford classmates and his unsuspecting professor. Jabbar and his fellow creators, serve up a nice opening to the mini-series leaving the reader ready for the next episode and if they’re anything like me, marveling at how Kareem Abdul-Jabbar got even cooler.
Publisher Titan Comics
Publication Date 8/3/2016
Creative
- Kareem Abdul Jabbar w’ Raymond Obstfeld
- Joshua Cassara – pencils
- Luis Guerrero – colorist
- Simon Bowland – letterer
