James Bond: Solstice

Writer/Artist: Ibrahim Moustafa
Colorist: Jordan Boyd
Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment
Price: $4.99

Dynamite Entertainment presents the first ever James Bond Christmas Special!

007 is sent on a clandestine mission. An ousted Kremlin operative is seeking a chance to worm his way back into Russia’s good graces. The spies plan is to woo the daughter of a very high-up official in MI6 over the holidays and then return to London with a mole in British Intelligence. It’s Bond’s unofficial job to see that this Russian baddie never makes it to Christmas morning. For you see, the father of this young girl is none other than that of James’ superior, the mysterious M!

This very special holiday special was a success! For a property like 007, it would be quite risky to do a holiday special as those can be quite sappy. But Solstice is in the vein of Die Hard in that with Christmas as the time of year this story is set, you could argue that it’s not really a holiday special. James Bond is not visited by Santa Claus or Ghosts of Christmases Past, Present or Future. By the end of this 32-pager, 007’s heart doesn’t grow 3-sizes too large. And just because he carries a gun, at no point does this MI6 man shoot his eye out!

Writer and Artist Ibrahim Moustafa (Doctor Fate) did an amazing double-duty job. His story was rather clean cut. There wasn’t an element of conspiracy or implied buried secrets that has dogged some previous Dynamite Entertainment takes on the Ian Fleming character. His art was quite simple and very sleek like a James Bond film. I felt like I was reading an adaptation of the next James Bond movie!

A lot of this praise is also due to the dynamic color palette of Evolution’s Jordan Boyd. He incorporates holiday colors into a rather bleak Paris winter landscape without making you think an elf vomited all over the page. And man, are those explosive yellows and oranges eye searing!

Solstice is not one of James Bond’s typical adventures. Yes, there’s lots of action and adventure. A great story as well. But when it comes to the ladies, there’s no love interest to distract from the story, aside from the required flirting session with Moneypenny.
If you are looking for a comic to get into the holiday spirit that’s not a typical Christmas special, then may I recommend this book? It’s a very quick read but overall worth every cent.

James Bond: Solstice debuted in comic shops nationwide on November 22nd.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.