The Hood: Blood From Stones #1

An origin story about Parker Robbins becoming The Hood when he finds a mysterious pair of boots and hood with magical powers and decides to use them for his own personal gain. 

The Hood was created by Brian K. Vaughan who is the writer of this mini-series which marks the Hood's first ever appearance. Vaughan creates a character that is easily believable. Robbins is a low-life deadbeat who cheats on his pregnant girlfriend and barely gets by from doing any type of jobs he can get, most of which are illegal. 

I definitely enjoyed the premise of the story. Having a character find a couple of magical objects and having to decide what to do with them is nothing new, but Vaughan takes the other path by having this character decide to use them for his own personal gain instead of helping other people. We've seen countless stories where a young and honest person finds something or is inadvertently given extraordinary powers and ends up using them for good but it was nice to see the other option explored. Vaughan does that to perfection in this comic. 

I like how quickly the Hood found himself in over his head. It wasn't an easy ride to the top of the criminal underworld. He definitely had to pay the price and will remember what it took for the rest of his life. Vaughan adds powerful plot twists to the story that unfold so naturally and are extremely heartfelt. 

The art was drawn by Kyle Hotz. I really enjoyed his style a lot. It was a perfect match for this darker street story. The inking and coloring really set the mood perfectly. The covers were great and at the end of the comic there are a bunch of sketches included. 

This was a great origin story you should definitely check out if you haven't. If you're a big Marvel reader then you've probably seen the Hood pop up in a comic at one point or another. If you ever wondered about his backstory you can find it here. Vaughan and Hotz deliver a vivid, gritty and original story that chronicles the early days of the Hood's criminal career.