Comic Info
Comic Name: Black Hammer/Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Artist: Davin Rubin
# of Issues: 5
Release Date: 2018
Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil #1 Variant
Reprints Black Hammer #12 and Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil #1-4 (August 2017-January 2018). Sherlock Frankenstein is the wickedest man in Spiral City…or at least he was. When the heroes disappeared in their battle with the Anti-God, Sherlock Frankenstein also disappeared. Lucy Weber believes her father Black Hammer and the other heroes are alive and that Sherlock Frankenstein holds the key. As Lucy seeks out her father’s old nemesis…someone or something is trying to stop her.
Written by Jeff Lemire, Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil is a Dark Horse Comics comic book collection. A spin-off title of Black Hammer, the series features art by David Rubin. It collects the Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil limited series (October 2017-January 2018) and Black Hammer #12 (August 2017) which wasn’t part of the Black Hammer collections. Issues in this collection were also part of The World of Black Hammer Library Edition—Volume 1.
Black Hammer is a comic book fan’s dream comic. Like Watchmen, the series is reflective. Characters and events in this series parallel events in other comic book series (particularly DC Comics). With this fun extra layer, Black Hammer has a lot of fun…and Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil dives into one of its one-dimensional character to give him his own depth.
Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil #4 Variant
In general Black Hammer and this series are pretty basic on the surface. They tell a normal comic book story, but it is a solidly told story. Lemire is creating a world and fleshing out the world allows for hundreds of tales if Lemire wishes. A guy on the street can have a story, a tiny supporting character, and someone like Sherlock Frankenstein can carry a tale. While this tale is mostly a Lucy Weber story, Sherlock Frankenstein gets to do his own storytelling through her investigation.
Black Hammer has danced around Sherlock Frankenstein multiple times. He has largely been a bit character but it is revealed through his relationship with Golden Gail that he has more than just villainous intent. In the last issue of this collection, you get an outline of a Frankenstein’s Victorian roots and how he turned evil…before returning to good. It is a bit more complex than your basic supervillain.
The story is bolstered by good art by David Rubin. Rubin has a classic comic book style, and I personally love when the retro style returns. The style is combined with a more modern panel layout and a great color spread that wouldn’t have existed in earlier comics…but it has that wholesomeness that modern comics don’t generally have.
Sherlock Frankenstein and the Legion of Evil is a so-so story, but it is an enriching story. I love when a creator owned world gets a chance to expand and this feels like a real expansion of Black Hammer. Black Hammer benefits not only from the divided worlds created in the core comic’s narrative, but a world that is so untapped which leads to comics like this collection…and Lemire has room to explore whatever he wants (and I’ll welcome it).
