REVIEW: 'The Ninjettes' #1 by Fred Van Lente, Joseph Cooper, and Dearbhla Kelly

 

THE NINJETTES #1

Writer: Fred Van Lente

Artist: Joseph Cooper, Dearbhla Kelly

Letterer: Jeff Eckleberry

Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment

Release Date: September 7, 2022

Cover Price: $3.99

Bursting from the pages of Jennifer Blood: Meet the Ninjettes! These college-age women were taught to fit the Profile - forced to become deadly and expendable assassins. But who created the Profile? Why were they selected to be its latest deadly operatives? And who will they kill first - their targets, or each other? It's all-out action from writer Fred Van Lente and artist Joseph Cooper!

Score:

★★★★☆ (4/5)

This origin story of the deadly assassins from 'Jennifer Blood' is as bloody and brutal as you'd expect. The inspiration is drawn from things like 'The Hunger Games' and 'Battle Royale' with writer Fred Van Lente as the demented mastermind behind this invoking his inner Tarantino. The debut issue drops the reader right in the middle of the action and hardly lets up. 

The young women are involuntarily chosen to participate based on a test that determines their penchant for violence in the future. Or something like that, anyway a mysterious figure uses their sociopathic tendencies in a game of survival. The survivors get to move on and Van Lente keeps the action moving with a few surprises and some wit. 

The pacing is quick but the lack of character development hinders the separation of the women. The reader won't be able to cling to or root for anyone right away. So the tradeoff of fast-paced action over characterizations works for this type of story, at least for now. 

Joseph Cooper and Dearbhla Kelly provide wonderfully composed, choreographed, and colored action. The character designs are especially well-conceived as they display a diverse group of women from all walks of life. The contrast helps to determine who's who and the overall bright color scheme adds a punch of life to the gruesome proceedings. Facial expressions convey a lot without a lot of dialogue.  

'The Ninjettes' is not subtle. Female sociopaths are brought together in a tournament of survival to weed out the weak so only the best killers emerge. Is it bloody? Yep. Is it fast-paced? Yes. Is it fun? You bet. Van Lente and Cooper gleefully put together a violent showcase of exploitation film-type action that would make Tarantino proud.