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Mar 01, 2010 Web Exclusive By Jeremy Nisen

Colt Noble and the Megalords is a 64-page, $6 one-shot comic published by Image. At once, it is both paying homage to, and poking fun at, the He-Man line of action figures, and cartoons, that were popular in the 1980s (with a dash of Thundercats and Transformers to boot).

Overall, this book is a hoot. Containing Colt Noble’s origin story, the one-shot definitely takes itself lightly, incorporating modern sensibilities, a little bit of potty humor, and straight-up lampooning of those ridiculous plastic figures. The art is good, especially on the more outlandish characters such as Hoodoo Hex, Fourhead (the man with four heads, albeit only one shows up at a time), and Dethbreath. Colt Noble, the He-Man-esque character, looks a little too chiseled and pretty. Remember, He-Man was nearly as goofy looking as his friends and enemies; Noble’s classic hero visage sticks out like a slightly sore thumb.

Personality- and dialog-wise as well, the villains are also the best part of the book. The sexual tension-filled misadventures of teen Prince Jaysen and his muscle-bound alter-ego Colt Noble are fun, but it’s the pathetic Hoodoo Hex, the translation-challenged Dethbreth, and the amusing missives of Archfiend: Lord of Annihilation that make this one-shot worthwhile.

With a somewhat less amusing, but still pretty good, backup starring the Animaliens (a Thundercats analog), the book’s amusing visuals and sense of playfulness never relent. I suspect an ongoing series might succeed on Seeley’s writing chops and a chance to develop the somewhat vanilla good guys while still leaning on the bad guys for spice. However, in this tome, it’s the villains you’ll be paying the most attention to—and ultimately make the book a thumbs up, especially if you carry nostalgia for ‘80s action toys and their cartoon tie-ins. (www.imagecomics.com)

Author rating: 6/10