Comic Review: Spawn #307

Spawn #307

Image Comics

Writer: Todd McFarlane

Artist: Philip Tan

General Outline
It’s been a while since we’ve gotten an issue of Spawn but it is officially back! After the grandiose set up from issues 300 and 301, Spawn has been a little shaky. The series has struggled to focus on one story, which is by no means new to Spawn. This issue continues that trend by switching the storyline once more and mostly disregarding the previous issue. The new antagonist for the series, who was hinted at in earlier issues, was revealed on the very last page. Without spoiling too much, I can’t help but get excited even if it feels like a Spawn fan fiction.

Given Spawn is on issue 307 and has been written by one guy just about the entire time, there should be no surprises about what you’re getting into. With that in mind, this issue is an amalgamation of some of the least desirable qualities of McFarlane’s writing. Just about the entire story is told through the perspective of the unnamed narrator. The narrator spends the issue explaining what is going on, how people are feeling, and other things that could have been simply shown with the art. In fact, the story would not suffer much if the art was completely removed. Excluding a couple of panels, the art rarely adds much to what the narrator is telling you. Luckily, this issue does actually progress an overarching story in the series. In the process, it does speed through the set up from the last issue but that might be for the best.

As I mentioned in my review of Spawn 306, this is a Spawn book so you should go into it knowing the art is going to rock. Philip Tan absolutely lives up to this expectation with some gorgeous pages. The lettering is also up to snuff for a Spawn book – which is good news since that’s mostly what you’ll be looking at. Unfortunately for him, Todd McFarlane is not a believer in the “show, don’t tell” rule. Everything you need to understand the story and the situations is clearly explained in the narration. Tan was no left with much to do except fill up pages with concept art for future toys.

This issue is a below-average Spawn comic but nothing in it should surprise fans. You can expect all of the Spawn trademarks: overly wordy narration, great art, and decompressed storytelling. If the entire run wasn’t riddled with unfulfilled promises the ending would be much more exciting. As with almost every other entry in this series, this issue was alright but it makes me excited for the next one. If you’ve been following Spawn recently, you really don’t need to read this issue but if you’re like me you probably will anyway.

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