The Immortal Men #4 - DC Comics

THE IMMORTAL MEN No. 4, September 2018

Pleasingly providing a look at a time “before common tongues and calendars, when Man was new, and the world was still taking shape”, this fourth instalment to James Tynion IV’s “The End Of Forever” storyline finally gave its readers an explanation as to just how the Immortal Man and Infinite Woman gained their super-powers 50,000 years ago. But whilst this exposition concerning the cave-dwelling Bear Clan makes for an entertaining start to the “DC Comics” storyline, it is delightfully soon overshadowed by the sheer sense-shattering shenanigans of the New Yorker’s modern-day based script, which features some stunning fight sequences between the likes of Timber and the Bloodless.

Indeed, the “member of the native Menominee Nation” initially takes centre stage with great gusto as she grows in size “to reach the height of a house” and with a smile upon her face, begins chopping Kyra Arg’s demonic minions to pieces, courtesy of Babe the Blue Axe. These early scenes, competently pencilled by Utah-born artist Tyler Kirkham, really are a joy to behold, and both demonstrate just how formidable a team member the fur-wearing Keshena Carpentier is, as well as provide an opportunity for the American author to detail her early 19th Century origin story; “The strange tale would carry east, to Philadelphia. To the Immortal Man. He would come to tell her that legends are shaped by great actions. And that as Timber she would shape many legends.”

Incredibly however, the majority of this twenty-page periodical actually predominantly focuses upon Klarn Arg rather than his House of Action, and in a demonstration of wielding a pair of laser swords which would truly put the likes of George Lucas’ Darth Maul to shame, this ongoing title’s audience are given a mind-blowing glimpse as to what perfecting “every fighting skill into an intimate art form" over "tens of thousands of years” looks like. In fact, the Immortal Man’s ability to best an entire army of savage, heavily-teethed Bloodless one-on-one makes for an incredible piece of action-packed story-telling, and only the epic confrontation’s conclusion, which results in his near-defeated sister cowardly skulking up behind him to fatally skewer her sibling upon her overly-large blade, probably drew a bigger intake of breath from the reader.

Storytellers: Tyler Kirkham & James Tynion IV, and Colorist: Arif Prianto