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James Bond #12 Review: Final Showdown With Eidolon

By Alex Widen

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James Bond has his final showdown with Eidolon’s surviving agent! Can even Agent 007 be a match for Beckett Hawkwood? Or will the uncanny soldier prove too much for him?

James Bond #12

Writer: Warren Ellis

Artist: Jason Masters

Colorist: Guy Major

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There is no keeping an evil organization down. Years after James Bond thought he’d rid the world of SPECTRE, their ghost Eidolon emerges. Made up of smuggled funds and die-hard extremists, their plan is nothing short of chaos and carnage. The current head of the small group is Beckett Hawkwood, a disfigured former war hero. James Bond prevented him from assassinating the head of MI6 and exposed his splinter cell of entrenched spies. Now Hawkwood has nothing left to lose.

Image by Dynamite Comics

This issue starts out slower than the last one, which ended on a cliffhanger. Translation operative (and former Turkish mole) Cadence Birdwhistle thinks her long ordeal is over. Bond successfully saved her from multiple assassinations, and she survived the MI6 coup attempt. When she spots Hawkwood outside the Houses of Parliament, Cadence panics. Now Hawkwood is after her, as Bond keeps both in his sights. With a bomb in play, every step is critical to prevent disaster!

Image by Dynamite Comics

A Taut Thriller With Lots of Action!

Image by Dynamite Comics

As with most issues of this series, Warren Ellis and Jason Masters offer excellent suspense and pacing. The issue reads very much like a cinematic storyboard, where the action flows from one panel to the next. Time is taken to establish mood and tempo, which is why it’s great that Dynamite Entertainment comics are still 22 pages. Beckett Hawkwood, in particular, is established as similar to Bond, but far more brutal and physically unstoppable. That’s no easy feat!

Image by Dynamite Comics

The chase between Beckett and Cadence, and then between he and James Bond, is quite exciting. Considering that comics are a static medium, depicting car chases is often difficult. One of the few comics that managed it was the manga Gunsmith Cats. Masters’ work on James Bond may be a close second in this regard. Masters also excels with general action, as depicted by the final showdown between Hawkwood and Bond. The story had teased it, and it didn’t disappoint.

Image by Dynamite Comics

The finale borders on anti-climatic, but Ellis just about pulls it off. In previous incidents, Ellis and Masters have depicted Bond as almost a machine in combat. He can almost effortlessly take down a dozen or so armed men with little more than a handgun and experience. Hawkwood has equal precision, but doubles it with strength and brutality. He can snap a man’s neck practically single handed, and shrug off critical injuries. This forces Bond to cater to his psyche in order to win.

Image by Dynamite Comics

Nothing but Bond. James Bond.

Another theme to the series is the coldness beneath Bond’s cool. The series isn’t shy about depicting how tough 007 is, but it also alludes to his chilling demeanor as well. That is part of why he has endless lovers; he lives only for the moment. He can survive a firefight or even outwit a man into killing himself, and, after, smoke a cigarette effortlessly. To him, it’s just another day at the office. It isn’t a theme or subtext which is heavily hammered in, but noticeable nevertheless.

Image by Dynamite Comics

Next: See how great a villain Hawkwood was in #11!

Dynamite Entertainment must be pleased by the success of this project, as they’ve branched out. Andy Diggle is writing a miniseries, James Bond: Hammerhead, and a series about his CIA contact Felix Leiter hits next month. A brand new number one issue has been solicited for Previews in March, but it’s unknown if either of these creators will return for it. It would be a shame if they didn’t, because both have crafted a year long run on Bond that’s to be shaken, not stirred.

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