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Red Mantis by David Morancho and Martin Pardo
01/05/2008 . Source: Tomas L. Martin 
pub: Platinum Studios. 32 page graphic novel. Price: $12.99 (US), $14.99 (CAN). ISBN: 978-1-934220-07-8. Buy Red Mantis in the USA - or Buy Red Mantis in the UK  check out website: www.platinumstudioscomics.com
Platinum Studios is a recent new comic book company set up by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, who used to produce 'The Men In Black' comics for Malibu Comics, leading to the story ending up on the big screen. In 2007, they started the new company and have produced some interesting releases already, trying to eke a place in amongst the Vertigos and the Marvels.
'Red Mantis' is one of the first graphic novels released by Spanish creative team David Morancho and Martin Pardo. It's an attractively packaged graphic novel although it is very short at 72 pages. A typical single episode of a comic is 22 pages and a graphic often collects 5 or more episodes.
The artwork by David Morancho is good, with some excellent use of rain and shadow. The colouring is simple but effective. The action scenes are effective and dynamic, with the car chase sequences in particular working well.
The story follows Lola, a Nikita-style female killer. After performing an assassination for a crooked mob boss, he decides to dispose of her so she can't talk. Needless to say she's tougher than that and escapes to hunt down the untrustworthy crime lord.
Along the way, Lola meets a police officer and they get together, complicating her attempts to be a cold-blooded killer with no attachments. When the mob boss turns out to have dangerous strings in the police, too, it all gets messy.
The plot is pretty typical mob story with love interest, but the action and dialogue is good enough to keep it enjoyable. I felt although solid, the artwork could have used some more expressive faces. Overall, this is a solid debut for this team and promises much for the future of Platinum Studios.
Tomas L. Martin
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