The prologue of the series comes to a close.
Creative Staff:
Story: Matt Kindt
Art: Clay Mann, Butch Guice
What They Say:
Ninjak’s mission to destroy Weaponeer and its secret cabal of shinobi masters just got a bit more complicated…since the newest leader of Weaponeer is… Ninjak himself?! Meanwhile, Roku’s gone missing, but we all know the world’s deadliest woman is at her most dangerous when she’s out of sight!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The first five issues of Ninjak essentially brings the prologue of the larger story to a close and sets into motion some pretty interesting events. in a lot of ways, this is where you’d see a movie being done and ending, leaving you wanting that tantalizing bit that they give you at the end made into something more. Luckily for Ninjak fans, that something more comes in the next issue. But the closure to the prologue works very well overall, even if it cuts short some of the overall impact in order to hit the key points it needs to put things in position. But after getting some issues that have delved heavily into background, it’s not a bad thing to skim a little bit rather than focus on pages upon pages of action.
With Colin having now been discovered, particularly as Kannon likely knew much from the start if not all the details, that puts things into the expected fight with Roku. What makes it work quite well though is that we don’t get a lot of the usual elements, as Colin knows he doesn’t need to maintain his cover anymore and goes on the offensive with her and fights back hard, enjoying it since he doesn’t have his swords and gets to go full on physical with it. After all the buildup of Roku though, it doesn’t turn into an extended fight because Kannon wants to get in on this himself and put it to an end while also possibly teasing out a bit more. This has Roku essentially fading into the background and disappearing while Colin and Kannon go at it. It’s a short sequence overall, though one that makes it clear the ability Kannon has. It’s mostly a bit of luck, quick thinking and using his surroundings that allows Colin to win.
Which works for me because I’m less interested in a slugfest than I am seeing what Colin does next. With his goal of going after the Seven, shipping Kannon off to Neville works well enough, but I loved seeing Colin entering the gray area of taking over for Kannon in order to hunt the rest down. He ends up working to supply the specialty weapons that the clients want, but he also uses it as an opportunity to mark new targets to be taken out as well. There are a few teases towards how this will play out, both with Kannon and what he’s up to as well as Roku, but it sets Colin on the offense and taking charge of the situation – or at least he thinks so.
The book does some good stuff with the flashback side as well. In the main story, we get some material detailing when his parents came back from one of their trips and it reveals how he got a better handle on the truth of his father and the safe room, which is interesting – as was the time dealing with Alain upon his return home. The backup story is one that also works well, showing us the end of the first year of Colin’s training and how he made a really big mistake with his handler, one that has shaped his career ever since. It’s a familiar element to traditional spy stories, but it also plays into the present with Neville becoming his handler here and that provides another tie between past and present.
In Summary:
I still find it hard to believe that I’m as engaged with this series as I am. While I liked the original Ninjak series, I wasn’t thrilled with some of the recent portrayals of the character in the last Armor Wars event as they didn’t scream read this character. But keeping Colin to himself, working through a traditional spy story that’s souped up a good degree, well, it all comes together in a strong way through the narrative, characterization and the fantastic artwork throughout. This opening arc sets the tone for what’s to come and hopefully it’s one that runs for awhile with some good twists and expansions along the way rather than barreling through it. I’ve got the faith in it at this point.
Grade: B+
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Valiant Entertainment
Release Date: July 29th, 2015
MSRP: $3.99
