Back from Viet Nam, kung fu master Hong Kong Phooey has set up his own detective agency in the inner city. Meanwhile, Jefferson Pierce (a.k.a. Black Lightning) has uncovered a plot by three assassins to collect the components of a sacred text revealing the darkest secrets of Martial Arts magic, and they'll kill anyone who owns them - including the dog who holds the last chapter of the book, Hong Kong Phooey. Plus, a tale of the Funky Phantom as he goes toe-to-toe with the Spectre in a tale by Jeff Parker and Scott Kolins.
Not only should you check this book out, you should also look up some of the other crossovers in this series. There is a lot of solid work here that is building upon characters we know, but putting them in situations that are unfamiliar. This is a good thing. The freshness is welcome and needs to be recognized. Read Full Review
Yes, the writer of Michael Cray and Postal is doing a story about a dog martial artist. Even more strangely, it's fantastic. Read Full Review
The lead feature is epic in scope and tone, making it easily my favorite of this round of DC/HB books. The second feature. not so much. Read Full Review
This was an all-around fun book to read, and even not knowing the characters well, it felt very natural. Read Full Review
Like the other DC/Hanna Barbera crossovers, this book is a fun read, with a large dose of nostalgia, especially for children of the 70s. It also provides a humorous and thought-provoking look at a serious issue that has dominated the news in recent months. This special is definitely well worth reading. Read Full Review
Hill is bringing Black Lightning onto his run on Detective Comics and this was a nice appetizer for what he's got in store for Jefferson Pierce. This was a fun team-up and certainly raises my interest in Hill's Detective Comics run and future Hong Kong Phooey adventures in the DCU. Read Full Review
As enjoyable as the main story was, its ignoring of a number of elements from the Hong Kong Phooey series and its resolute focus on a mystic martial arts plot that is a little well-worn mean that I can't give it an especially high score. Throw in some energetic, but somewhat unappealing art and a back-up story that is mostly a set-up to score cheap political points and you've got an issue that is enjoyable enough, but is never going to set the world on fire. Read Full Review
Those who are expecting high comedy will be disappointed but those who might enjoy a slice of nostalgia that perfectly replicates the cheesy but enjoyable feeling of a good 1970's low-budget kung-fu action movie will want to check this out. Read Full Review
If I am being honest Black Lightning/Hong Kong Phooey #1 was not as cool as I wanted it to be. With the creators throwing around names like Bruce Lee and epic Kung Fu movies I actually got a little excited about this one-shot. For the most part, it was okay, it had a lot of flaws and did not totally live up to what it could have been but it was not a total waste either. The backup story was probably a waste of eight pages though. Read Full Review
The story's a bit of a mess too, but the comic might have been salvageable with a less mottled color job. Read Full Review
While the backup story is ok, the main story is a wonderful homage to 1970’s blaxploitation & martial arts movies. Give it a read!
The main story gives me Iron Fist vibes, but isn't particularly engaging, the second story is political and I really dislike politics in comics unless it's like say... the Big Blue dropping moral bombs.
the storys fun. the arts pretty lame.
the followup story confused me though. it strongly sells the idea that people shouldnt own guns in america. but you just told a story about an individual who has a weapon that can level a city hidden away. and when the enemy finds it (rather easily) said individual gives the enemy this powerful weapon and then fights them with an even more powerful weapon... so this comic basically is saying that if you have a gun, and you only use it against bad people, then youre ok. but if youre a blue collar midwesterner in a trucker hat, then youre too dumb to have one and you shouldnt.... once again, this is very confusing. do you want the kids who read this comic to own a gun or not?