The Good: First let me start off by saying I’m enjoying this series so far. Jim Zubkavich and Omar Dogan are creating something that is not only interesting but youthful. Jim Zubkavich takes a very lighthearted approach to Ibuki and Omar Dogan art follows suite in a way that goes very well together. Issue #2 deals with Ibuki‘s internal struggle between the responsibilities of being a ninja and the desire to just be a normal high school girl. She’s almost like Street Fighter’s version of Spider-man and it’s cool to see her juggle those two lives. I also love how Jim skillfully brings Ibuki’s world into the rest of the Street Fighter universe since Street Fighter 3 has always seemed like the oddball game since the characters generally had no connection to other Street Fighter characters. Jim makes her fit in without forcing anything. The artwork of course is top notch as Omar is a beast.
The Bad: This can be seen as a good and bad but In #2 we also get to understand what makes Makoto tick. It almost creates a problem in this issue as we are given such a entertaining Makoto that it’s easy to find yourself wanting to hurry through the Ibuki stuff just to get to the pages with Makoto. She basically outshines the series’ main character. Also in this issue we are introduced to Elena whose personality is a bit different than one might expect. She comes across overly happy and naive. In Jim’s defense Elena’s personality has never been fleshed out in the past so there was little for him to base her on from the games. I guess I expected happy but not that happy. Omar adds to the extra happiness but having Elena smile so much and so hard that her eyes are actually closed in almost every panel she appears in. In addition to all that, the series seems to lack a real villain. Yeh we have the Geki but there is no Green Goblin to Ibuki’s Spider-man so to speak.
The Other: Elena is a monster! I knew she was tall but she comes across like a giant in this series. It’s interesting as it adds to her character and at the same time makes her seem outof place amongst the other female characters. Also this issue lacks much fighting. There’s nothing wrong with that as we get some excellent character word play but someone new to the series may find that odd since, you know, the comic is called Street Fighter.
Overall: Overall the issue is good and seems to move the storyline forward. Much in the way the Sakura mini did, this series is showing readers that the Street Fighter universe isn’t all about seriousness, it can be fun too. I’d recommend checking it out even if it’s only to be properly prepared for issues #3 and #4 where the series will likely really pick up steam.
Authors bio is coming up shortly.
