The sides firm up in dangerous ways.
Creative Staff:
Story: Marguerite Bennett
Art: Laura Braga
Colors: Wendy Broome
What They Say:
The siege of London continues. Mera is locked in a life and death struggle with the Kraken. And just when hope is on the horizon, a newer and deadlier threat emerges.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The introduction of the formal team the last time around for just one panel was a fantastic event a long time in coming. But one that felt like it was fully earned after 33 issues because we had gotten to know their stories, the various configurations that came into play, and that they did operate separately in these groupings for a while all while still being known to each other. So when they make their big play in London against Nereus it really felt like it had significant impact. And that’s still here early on in this issue when they get into full action mode together with a fantastic full page spread that Laura Braga gets to do. I loved what Mirka Andolfo got to do the last time around and I hope that each artist gets an opportunity to do full page spreads of the team as a whole like this because they’ll each bring their own signature style to it in a great way. And Braga most certainly doesn’t disappoint here with what she does.
Action dominates in this installment and there are a lot of great scenes that balances out what came before, especially the great character/relationship pieces that came into it. Each of these heroes gets their time to shine and showcase their abilities as they fight against the varied enemies that have surfaced with the key players such as Nereus and Paula Von Gunther along with Nygma. The smaller panels are great, especially with the larger black sections around them to personalize it more, but there are also some great larger spreads that just provide for some great impact. Mera in particular stands out here with her battle against Nereus and the more personal connection there in facing off against a titan like him. Mera has been my favorite from her first panels in this series and seeing her facing off here against such a fantastically illustrated opponent like Nereus is just perfect.
And I adore that Bennett draws us back to a piece earlier in the series where Mera talked about how we all narrate our own stories. Her refusal to fall in the face of Nereus is powerful, particularly the scale of the scenes and the power of it that Braga brings to it, but it’s enhanced by her refusal to be taken out of the story, saying plainly that this is their story and she won’t be taken down. This makes what she does to stop Nereus feel all the more powerful as she works toward that goal with all the sacrifice that it entails. Giving this aspect of the fight as much time as it does, and making it all about Mera, completely made this book excellent for me. But it’s also one that you really do need to re-read a second and third time to take in all the details you may miss in that first reading because of the energy that propels you through it. There’s some fantastic power in all of this and Mera owns this issue and makes her story a truly leading one.
In Summary:
With a few other subplots in play and some solid pieces where Nereus talks of the promises to those that follow him, I’m beyond glad that this issue focused on what it did as much as it did. I enjoyed the book solidly enough in the first read through, but when I dug into it the second time around and blew up the images on my monitor instead of my ipad, the whole thing took on another life. Bennett’s script keeps it all moving at a good pace and the dialogue draws you in to wanting to know what’s next. But Laura Braga and Wendy Broome completely own this issue with what they bring to life with it. It’s fantastically illustrated and full of power and impact with its designs, particularly with Nereus in a way that really surprised me. Great stuff all around and another solid and impactful installment.
Grade: A
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: DC Comics via ComiXology
Release Date: March 11th, 2016
MSRP: $0.99
I recently bought & read the first 3 issues of DC Comics Bombshells and I can certainly see why you’re so big on this series. I really liked the takes on Batwoman & Supergirl & if this issue is any indication, it looks like I’m in for a very nice payoff by the time i get this far. Good review!
They’re definitely fun and getting a weekly dose of it just makes it all the more exciting.