CSN Press; $4.99 

They're not always great, but I love licensed comics. As a creator, it's a chance to build on something – sometimes on almost nothing to start with – and give it greater depth and resonance, or at least to tell more stories with characters that people like.  

For years, I've run a Licensed Comics panel at conventions (mainly San Diego, but also NYCC and Baltimore), and a good bit of my comic writing experience has been on licensed properties such as 24, Battlestar Galactica, Stargate Atlantis, Stargate Universe, and The Three Stooges. 

All of that preamble is to say not only do I appreciate good licensed comics, I actually know at least a thing or two about them.  

That said, they can't all be winners, even when some pretty cool talent is attached. 

Then Marvel Comics and Ideal Toys teamed up in 1982 to launch Team America, it wasn't the greatest comic. It certainly fell short of G.I. Joe, Rom, Micronauts, and Transformers. But their first issue did have a truly great cover, probably the thing most collectors remember from that series. 

Then it ended after 12 issues. The characters were absorbed into the Marvel universe, and the toys themselves reverted to Ideal, which eventually went out of business. Their rights were later acquired, and the Marvel half and the Ideal half are pretty unlikely to meet again. 

But then Dave Witting at Comic Shop News Press and writer Mathew L. Price developed an idea of a new version of the team without the familiar trappings of Marvel superheroes dropping in and out of the series. Team America Racing #1, their new one-shot, is a sort of love letter to licensed comics, but it's got its own original spark, too. 

Without spoilers, Team America Racing is a motorcycle racing and stunt team that has been targeted by an unknown malefactor, and they're protected by an unknown benefactor. It's a good, fairly normal comic book set-up. 

What's incredibly cool, though, is the well-paced story they've cooked up. What's more, Price and artist Josh Hood constructed a four-page fight sequence without feeling the need to flood it with dialogue. Yeah, it's great when Spider-Man has wonderful banter during a battle, but for other characters it seems forced. None of that here. 

It's a fun read. 

The issue also includes a bit about the history of the property, an introduction to the creative team, and more. It's all very enjoyable. 

As much as it's intended as a one-shot, it does set up a great story, and it ends on a "to be continued," so one can hope this isn't the last we see of Team America Racing.   

– J.C. Vaughn