S L I N G E R S . # 0

Slingers #0
"The Learning Curve"
Creative Team: Joseph Harris (writer) / Adam Pollina (pencils) / Jimmy Palmiotti (inks)

SUMMARY OF EVENTS:
It is the middle of the night. Just as Spiderman passes by, the Slingers -- made up of Prodigy, Ricochet, Hornet, and Dusk -- come out to play. Okay, maybe not to play but to train. Those four young men and woman are four of the newest superheroes in New York, which means they're gonna have to beef up to contend with the big boys.

The training session for tonight? To jump off one building rooftop to the next. All seem to have made it except for Dusk, who stands alone on the ledge of a building while the others wait for her in the next. But she's scared, and who can blame her? So Hornet, being the gentleman he is, flies over to Dusk to talk to her, while Rico and Prodigy have a... chat. Hornet tries to talk Cassie into making the jump, but she quickly changes subjects. She talks about why Hornet accepted to become a "superhero", and how she's going to be kicked off the team. In the end, she agrees to jump.

Meanwhile, Ricochet starts to sing and, naturally, Prodigy gets annoyed. Rico tries to lighten him up, and tells him that the two of them are the same. Rico then throws one of his bouncing discs, which ricochets off a pile of garbage and almost hits him in the head. The next time we see the two, they are on the ledge of a building, waiting for Dusk and Hornet, while Ricochet is doing handstands. Prodigy is obviously not entertained, and Rico tells him that it's because he was first to be chosen as a Slinger rather than Prodigy. But as he says those very words, his hands slip and he falls off. Instinctively, Prodigy grabs him and he is not happy about it.

Hornet flies back to the guys and tells them Cassie's ready for the jump. Eddie makes the three guys, including himself, to turn and not look so there wouldn't be so much pressure. Instead of jumping, however, Cassie just... steps off the ledge. They turn around, and she's gone. Actually, not gone, just ten stories lower than where they left her. The three quickly flee the scene, and leave Cassie to die in the ally.

COMMENTS:
An excellent, albeit short, issue all around. Adam Pollina's art style suits the Slingers perfectly, and Jimmy Palmiotti's inks help a lot too. The pencils, inks, colors, letters, even the glossy paper -- everything you need to get people's attentions. Hopefully this Wizard promo worked.

To match the excellent art, Joseph Harris does a great job with the script. Not much action going on though, but that's okay. It still leaves the readers with enough questions to pick up the first issue. The characters' personalities, differences, and quirks really show well here. Joseph Harris admits to #0 being one of his personal favorite issues of Slingers thus far, and I must agree with him.