“Foundations” (No Spoilers)
Just as The Authority took time to catch their breath in the recent issue #21, the Wildcats have done the same here. Adam Beechen and Tim Seeley have wisely taken this format of starting with a 3-issue arc, and taking a “breather-issue” here before we begin the new 3-part story next month. It is obvious they are laying out a lot of information here but just because we don’t have any huge battles in this issue, there is no shortage of great moments here.
Tag: kristy quinn
Garrison #1
It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a Wildstorm publication with Jeff Mariotte’s name on it. It’s been even longer since he’s written something that was published by Wildstorm. Jeff Mariotte was on several Wildstorm books back during their Image days. I know he’s done other original creations before but I hadn’t read any of them until now.
This issue is a decent set-up for the story. I’d equate it to the first 30-minutes of a film. There is some action, but even that seems to cater to the set-up and introduction of the story more than anything else. Mariotte does a good job of setting up our title character as a man of mystery. His motivations aren’t clear yet but his actions have the authorities after him. So far, there’s not much to know about Garrison the character but that’s part of the story itself. No one knows who this guy is or what to make of what he’s doing.
Dv8: Gods and Monsters #1
“The Day I Tried to Live” (No Spoilers)
Wow! This is a really deep comic. Brian Wood has taken these characters that were once simply the “evil Gen 13”, and presented what is almost a psychological study of them. When Warren Ellis took these characters into their own series, his interest in the characters seemed to be that they were screwed up individuals and he wanted to explore that. As much as I usually like Ellis’ work, I didn’t think his Dv8 run was that great. Although he did tell some stories with these characters that were pretty messed up, ultimately I don’t think it really got into each of the team members like Wood does here.
Sparta U.S.A. #2
“Fear the Future” (No Spoilers)
Sparta U.S.A. is one of the oddest stories I’ve read in a long while. It’s one-part Twilight Zone, one-part Twin Peaks, with just a dash of Doctor Who thrown in. It’s the kind of story that you spend a lot of time trying to wrap your brain around. So far, I couldn’t tell you if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.
It’s not that the concepts are completely out there. Rising up against an oppressive force seems to be the basis for the story so far. It’s the odd setting and the details of this world that leave you in a constant state of uncertainty.