Secret Identities #1 Review

writers: Jay Faerber, Brian Joines / artist: Ilias Kyriazis / Image Comics Any time I begin a new series I’m inherently skeptical. As much as I love comics, I still can’t shake the worry that comes with spending a little time and money on something with the chance I might not like it. The result is staring at the book’s cover with suspicious Fry-face for at least 5 minutes before the doubt turns to excitement and I get started. Such was the case with Secret Identities, a new series from Image highlighting a brand new super hero team. The series follows a story arc with which we’re all familiar – there’s a mole inside the good guys – yet it’s telling the story from the perspective of the mole and their initial infiltration of the team. It’s an interesting twist on the trope considering that almost all the mole-stories I can think of highlight the good guys, but also begin long after the mole has gained everyone’s trust, only to turn on their heel at the end and reveal themselves as the traitor. Secret Identities starts with that initial infiltration of Crosswind, the character setting out to break the Front Line team of heroes from the inside, and we can expect a long journey of lies and maneuvering before the team trusts him nearly enough for him to hurt them.

Feel gimmicky? Not so fast. It’s actually quite brilliant as a major theme of the book, and feels more gimmicky the way it’s regularly used on popular shows, movies, and books. Consider some of the most popular spy sto…