By Hussein Wasiti — Some spoilers below I guess. Not sure how much I can reveal at this point. Anyway, you will never find me happier than when I’m reading a comic from artist Chris Samnee and colorist Matthew Wilson. 

They’re my favorite artistic pairing in comic books; Samnee’s expressive and clear style coupled with Wilson’s beautifully saturated and colorful palettes make for some of the best comics you’ll ever read. They’ve been working together for years, from Daredevil to Captain America, and their collaboration reaches new heights in Fire Power, the latest offering from Robert Kirkman and Skybound. 

The story focuses on Owen Johnson, an orphan who is travelling the world to learn more about his heritage and the parents he never knew. His journey brings him to the Temple of the Flaming Fist, where the ancient art of throwing fire balls with your hands was practiced long ago. There are still a lot of students and plenty of teachers, but none of them have been able to reignite the true power of the flame in a way that their ancestors did. They can generate enough heat to cause minor burns and to cook rice in bowls, but nothing as substantial as their forefathers did. They used to be able to melt chunks off of pillars, for example. 

There’s a lot here to compare to something like the original Star Wars trilogy. You’ve got a young hero with a lot of potential and a mysterious power bubbling inside him, an elderly mentor who guides him along the way, a kind of forbidden love affair, and an organization which threatens the temple’s more peaceful way of life with a Vader-like villain. The story also focuses on a “past its prime” period when it comes to the temple, like how the Jedi have entered near-mythic status in A New Hope. 

Comparisons to The Last Airbender and even Dragon Ball could be even more apt, but I haven’t watched any of those to make anything direct other than a broad comparison. I’m just familiar with them through the ol’ cultural osmosis; everything from the protagonist with untapped potential to his Goku-esque pose when finally unleashing a fireball all bring those two animated series to mind. 

On the surface, Fire Power has a fairly generic premise compared to Kirkman’s other, more high-concept titles. You wouldn’t be wrong in thinking so. Kirkman even threw in a bully character who doesn’t respect the protagonist at all! It’s in Kirkman’s at this point masterful character work and Samnee’s breathtakingly gorgeous visuals that makes this story utterly engaging and a blast to read. There’s a nicely focused, small cast of main characters to keep track of and they’re all introduced wonderfully and grow very naturally over the course of this great story. I’m really looking forward to seeing what roles they play in the upcoming ongoing series. 

Onto the matter of Samnee. This may be controversial, but this is hands-down the most gorgeous comic Kirkman has ever been involved with. Samnee’s inky, cartoony style is such a far cry from the hard edges of Ryan Ottley’s superheroes, or the gritty tones of Charlie Adlard’s work on The Walking Dead; its uniqueness is what sets it apart. The opening of the story details Owen’s ascent up the mountain to the Temple, and it’s entirely wordless. We get to see a side of Samnee we don’t necessarily get to see too often, and that extends to some of the action scenes near the end of the book; there’s a widescreen aspect to the book that Samnee depicts with perfect precision. The scale here is unlike anything he’s ever done, and that feeling is immediate. 

This is the best Kirkman debut in recent years. It’s an engaging and gorgeous introduction to this brand new world, and the ending has me pretty excited for the ongoing series that’s set to debut this summer. If you’ve never read a Chris Samnee comic before, prepare to experience something unlike anything you’ve ever read before. 

Fire Power Vol. 1: Prelude
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artist: Chris Samnee
Colorist: Matthew Wilson
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Publisher: Image Comics / Skybound
Release Date: July 1, 2020
Solicit: SERIES PREMIERE! ALL-NEW series created by ROBERT KIRKMAN (THE WALKING DEAD, INVINCIBLE, OBLIVION SONG) and Chris Samnee (Daredevil)! Owen Johnson's journey to China to learn about his birth parents eventually leads him to a mysterious Shaolin Temple. The students there study to rediscover the Fire Power, the lost art of throwing fireballs. A power they claim will be needed soon to save the world. Will Owen Johnson be the first person in a thousand years to wield the FIRE POWER?
Buy It Digitally: Fire Power Prelude OGN via comiXology

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Hussein Wasiti is a history undergraduate with an intense passion for comics. He is a staff writer on The Beat and a contributor to Comics Bookcase. You can find him on Twitter as bullthesis. He lives in Toronto with his hordes of comics.