“For the Greater Chaotic Good”
Creative Staff:
Story: Tim Seeley
Art: Freddie E. Williams II
Colors: Jeremy Colwell
Letterer: Marshall Dillon
What They Say:
The epic conclusion as the War Party converges on Washington, D.C. to stop the Mad Monk and his American Acolytes from murdering a god!
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
I may have known it along the way at some point but I had forgotten that this series ended with four issues and it reminded me how much I missed miniseries of that length, coming from the background of the 80s comics. Tim Seeley wraps things up in the way a fourth issue should in this structure with action upon action and some minor character resolution at the end. Freddie E. Williams II is once again doing some fantastic stuff here as he uses magic and different worlds in an engaging way with some really creative facial expressions that make the characters fun to connect with. There’s a good sense of power and immense detail to so much of this that it almost overwhelms.
With the finale, we get some fun time with the gang in the van as they’re heading down to the NSA to deal with what Craev and Dylan are up to. It’s a light bit overall that shows some good character material, especially between Warlock and Fain as they have a real sense of friendship and clarity here that didn’t quite come through clearly before. But it’s all just preamble to what awaits them, which is Craev and Dylan in one of the most protected and secured places in the world as they begin their summon. Bringing the god Sworne from Tangea to here is no small feat but the plan behind it shifts surprisingly quickly. While originally it was to help heal Deidre, Sworne is bound in place, Deidre killed, and Craev making his play to gain the power of godhood so as to rule over all.
What we get from there is basically the bulk of the book being all about the action as the team makes their attack and saves the day. It’s no surprise that they save the day and win but they do it with a bit more violence than some might expect from heroes and with a bit more temptation toward godhood as well. It plays out well but it also highlights how little connection I feel to any of the characters. The opponents aren’t fleshed out at all by this point all told so they’re just fodder getting taken down. I do like that everything works to bring the group back to Tangea and that they’ve figured out their best path forward from there because of their experiences on Earth. It has a good wrap-up feeling about it while also laying things out with how it can go easily enough.
In Summary:
With the postscript that has the creative talking about the origins a bit and that they have plenty more they’d like to tell in the future, I do like that this is a kind of trial balloon for more as I’d not be adverse to it – if it can spend a bit more time on character with non-action material. Seeley’s got the ability easily to expand on this in so many ways that I’d easily be on board for more as long as it’s not a repeat of what we just saw. I’m a huge fan of the four-issue run as it forces a certain kind of tightness on the creative, especially in scripting and character material, but it can be done and has been many times over the years so I’d love to see more of it. Bequest was fun and has plenty of potential but it just needs a certain shift-kick to get it to where it needs to be in my mind.
Grade: B-
Age Rating: 15+
Released By: AfterShock Comics
Release Date: June 23rd, 2021
MSRP: $3.99
