Rom: Dire Wraiths #3 - IDW Publishing

ROM: DIRE WRAITHS No. 3, October 2020

Published almost eleven months to the day when the mini-series’ opening instalment was first released, Chris Ryall’s script for Issue Three of “Rom: Dire Wraiths” was arguably worth its long wait considering just how action-packed its concluding narrative is. In fact, the nineteen-page periodical’s plot flows so fast towards its fulfilling finale that some within the comic’s audience probably felt that the former President of “IDW Publishing” could possibly have ‘squeezed’ at least another edition or two out of his book’s premise that the entire 1969 moon landing was almost disastrously eaten by a pack of slavering Dire Wraiths.

 As it stands however, the surviving extra-terrestrial antagonists found within this magazine are rather uncharacteristically easy for the ‘fleshbag’ humans to overcome, with one particularly formidable-looking specimen actually running away from his space-suited prey after it becomes abundantly evident that the sharp-toothed alien isn’t quite as strong as its hulking size would suggest; “But I can’t help notice you’re blustering a lot more than you are attacking! By all rights, you should’ve cracked me open like a Maine lobster but I’m still up and around.”

Enjoyably though, the astronauts’ ability to physically intimidate and later tactically outwit their multi-eyed opponents doesn’t debatably stop either Ryall’s storyline or illustrator Ron Joseph’s astonishing good artwork from being any less entertaining, as these elements actually provide the opportunity for some marvellously tense action-packed set-pieces, such as Sandra Shen getting the better of a Dire Wraith sorcerer on board the Adventure-One Satellite, or the space mission’s commander courageously ordering one of his fellow cosmonaut’s to kill him with a technologically-advanced laser rifle before the hapless hero can be consumed alive by one of the ravenous aliens.

Correspondingly as compelling is this comic’s secondary story, “One Small Step For A Spaceknight”, which does a good job of explaining just how Rom somehow magically managed to be in orbit of the Earth’s moon at just the right moment to save Apollo 11 from a truly grisly fate. Dynamically drawn by Guy Dorian Senior and Maria Keane, this five-pager’s highlight is witnessing the ursine member of the Solstar Order, Nikomi, unselfishly sacrificing himself to be abandoned alone in outer space, so as to ensure his armoured friend was able to save Mankind from the Dire Wraith threat.

The regular cover art of "ROM: DIRE WRAITHS" #3 by Luca Pizzari

Warhammer 40,000: Marneus Calgar #4 - Marvel Comics

WARHAMMER 40,000: MARNEUS CALGAR No. 4, April 2021

Marvellously mixing the titular character’s rise to becoming a Space Marine “hundreds of years earlier” with the ‘present-day’ events on Nova Thulium, Kieron Gillen’s narrative for Issue Four of “Warhammer 40,000: Marneus Calgar” arguably doesn’t give its audience time to breathe until towards its very end when the humble Neophyte faces a final test at the hands of a ruthless Inquisitor. And even then, the tense atmosphere generated by the deeply disconcerting agent’s conversation concerning Tacitan’s previous contact with Crixus’ Khorne Cult, is so palpable that the vast majority of this comic’s readers were probably too busy holding their breath to inhale any air anyway.

Indeed, the Inkpot Award-winner does an excellent job within this twenty-two page periodical’s plot of perpetually hurling any perusing bibliophile straight into the very heart of the action, whether that be Marneus’ retaking of the Calgar Estates from an army of Chaos Heretics or the detailed depiction of the adolescent aspirant desperately defying all the odds to overcome the xenos threat of an Ambull, the slaughter of servitors, and an attack by Orks; “The University of Death. I learned many things from many teachers. I survived when men died. I realised that is what makes a Space Marine.”

Happily however, all this bloodshed and carnage hasn’t simply been assembled just to pad out the publication, but actually strives to show how violent an upbringing the Chapter Master of the Ultramarines had, and how those gore-soaked experiences helped shape him into the killing machine he eventually becomes. This character-building is perhaps best seen when the Lord of Macragge is shown to willingly face down an enormous Helbrute who had literally just torn asunder one of his battle-brothers, without either of his hearts skipping a beat.

Jacen Burrows pencils Calgar as actually seeming to relish the opportunity to confront such a truly terrifying Chaos Dreadnought, so the San Diego-born artist’s subsequent illustrations of the legendary Space Marine’s rise from a gaunt-looking boy into such an icon of the Emperor makes for a truly mesmerising experience, especially as his ascension is documented alongside all the surgical enhancements his initially feeble physical body withstands. In fact, for those Warhammer 40,000 fan-boys fascinated by the numerous organ enhancements and adaptions which take place upon an Adeptus Astartes Neophyte, this comic book is the ideal place to ponder them.

The regular cover art of "WARHAMMER 40,000: MARNEUS CALGAR" #4 by James Stokoe

Lytton #2 - Cutaway Comics

LYTTON No. 2, December 2020

Absolutely packed full of enthralling conundrums and nerve-wracking plot-twists, Eric Saward’s narrative for Issue Two of “Lytton” should readily hook any fan of the former “Doctor Who” Script Editor’s work from the comic’s very opening, in which Charlie Wilson nonchalantly mentions to his enigmatic boss that he’s already shipped some inconvenient corpses “to Afghanistan in a sealed container.” Indeed, the bodyguard’s imperturbable attitude towards all the death and utterly bizarre destruction occurring around him is one of this twenty-eight page periodical’s greatest draws, whether the Vietnam veteran is staring open-mouthed at the disconcerting demise of the robotic Miss L, being partially eaten by a hungry Space Louse, or thoroughly enjoying himself battering a pair of homicidal constables and then subsequently running for his life; “I’m enjoyin’ this. Didn’t realise I was so fit. We need to get off this road. Those Policemen won't be down for long.”

Similarly as successfully penned is this book’s titular character, who exudes all the arrogant charm and assertive confidence which made him so popular when portrayed on television by the late Maurice Colbourne in the mid-Eighties. Gustave’s apparent knowledge of the deranged “space traveller” Longbody, as well as his evident familiarity with a portal to a parallel Earth, definitely raises more questions within the audience’s mind than they answer. But that just makes his repeated need for Wilson’s presence all the more intriguingly troubling, especially when things start to happen which the straight-backed mercenary was clearly not anticipating, such as his chance encounter with Astro-physicist Artemis Brown and a time slip bricking up the entranceway to the underground tube tunnel Lytton was trying to escape from.

Also adding enormously to this comic’s extra-dimensional ambiance is Barry Renshaw’s garishly coloured pencils, energetic layouts and genuinely creepy viewpoints of the adventure as it unfolds before the readers' eyes. The Liverpool artist really manages to capture the standoffish stiffness of this mini-series’ leading man from Riften 5, whilst simultaneously showing that he can equally be every bit the action hero a situation requires by dynamically sketching him sprinting through spatial doorways after his work colleague, unloading his pistol upon a particularly nasty-looking spectral amoeba and haring down heavily-tiled corridors as they collapse about his ears.

The regular cover art of "LYTTON" #2 by Barry Renshaw

Shang-Chi #4 - Marvel Comics

SHANG-CHI No. 4, February 2021

Rather nicely mixing the modern day values of this mini-series’ titular character with the mythical past of his ancestors, Gene Luen Yang’s narrative for Issue Four of “Shang-Chi” probably surprised many within its audience courtesy of its somewhat sympathetic portrayal of the evil sorcerer, Zheng Zhu. For whilst it is the Master of Kung Fu’s long-dead uncle, Zheng Yi, which this twenty-page periodical’s plot actually focuses upon, it is the ghost’s recollection of the Five Weapons Society’s fall in 1860 at the hands of Baron Harkness and the subsequent revelation that “Fu Manchu” lied about stealing his late brother’s spirit energy in order to inspire fear, which arguably leaves a lasting mark upon the audience.

Indeed, the American author seems to positively delight in wrong-footing any perusing bibliophile with this book’s narrative by repeatedly switching the existing relationships between its central characters, such as the stoically loyal Takeshi suddenly losing his infectious faith that the former MI-6 operative should single-handedly lead his secret society following Chi's half-brother being given a vision of Shang's dark future by a multi-limbed tomb guardian; “Before I eat your face meat, want to hear my secret? Master Zheng Zu’s spirit commanded me to let Hand go! First Hand defeats Hammer! Then Hand becomes Commander! Then Earth burns to ashes! Master Zheng Zu’s revenge!”  

Yang is also very good at intertwining a significantly spiritual storyline with plenty of pulse-pounding pugilism. Admittedly, the battle against the aforementioned Chimera-like creature in a cave buried deep beneath Henan Province in China, is arguably this comic’s action-packed highlight. But there’s also the shockingly swift defeat of MI-5’s reconnaissance squad at the House of the Deadly Staff to enjoy, following the covert operations team’s unwise decision to change their mission goal and attempt to arrest “a gang of illegals who fight with sticks!”

Equally as responsible for this publication’s success as its penmanship is the artwork of Dike Ruan and Philip Tan, who between them do a stellar job of imbuing even the most sedentary of scenes set at Zheng Yi’s gravesite with mesmerising life. Of particular note are Tan’s layouts depicting Lord Dormammu’s Mindless Ones demolishing Zheng Zu’s super-powered defenders during the Nineteenth Century Opium War, and in many ways it is a real pity that the Manila-born illustrator isn’t given more sheet space with which to sketch such a sensational-looking sequence.

The regular cover art of "SHANG-CHI" #4 by Bernard Chang

Star Trek: Year Five #19 - IDW Publishing

STAR TREK: YEAR FIVE No. 19, January 2021

Predominantly focusing upon the Starfleet surgeon Leonard McCoy, as well as the ship-based shenanigans of Hikaru Sulu and Pavel Chekov, Jim McCann’s script for Issue Nineteen of “Star Trek: Year Five” certainly contains plenty of nervy emotional suspense and pulse-pounding phaser action. Indeed, almost every scene within the twenty-page periodical ends on some sort of dramatic cliff-hanger, whether it be the Enterprise’s Chief Medical Officer demanding to be released from an isolation cell so he can lead the investigation into the “pandemic raging across Alpha Centauri”, or one of the senior helmsman’s many corridor-confining confrontations with the homicidal shape-shifter Isis.

Disappointingly however, any reader willing to scratch just below the surface of this comic’s high-octane antics will arguably soon find a highly illogical plot which seems to have been manufactured simply so the book sets a pleasing pace, and everybody, apart from a bucket load of hapless ‘Red Shirts’ savagely torn asunder by Gary Seven’s feline friend, has something reasonably exciting to both do and say; “Damn it, Jim, I’m a Doctor, not a lab rat. If you’ve got questions, come in and ask me.”

To begin with, the Eisner-winning writer’s storyline involving Bones debatably makes little to no sense, considering that the ‘old country doctor’ starts the instalment angrily berating his Commanding Officer for locking him up following the physician’s accidental exposure to a deadly virus. Considering that James Kirk went to some quite extraordinary lengths to protect his shipmate, the skipper’s immediate decision to then release Leonard back to the planet's surface without any further debate appears strangely out of character for the Federation’s youngest Starship captain, and proves as head-scratching a conundrum as the plague’s highly unlikely cure which can simply be delivered by having a human breathe over its victims..?

Similarly as contrived is Sulu and Chekov’s victory over the seemingly invincible Isis. The psychotic killer has repeatedly shown herself to be virtually indestructible when in her Tholian form. Yet Hikaru almost nonchalantly puts her out of commission by somehow breaking the alien’s arm in hand-to-hand combat, whilst phaser beams and Starfleet security guards are flying all over the place. This unlikely success doesn’t sit well at all considering just how many other participants also tried to physically overpower Seven’s “pet cat” during the fracas and were all lethally disembowelled once they got within touching distance of the extra-terrestrial’s crystalline claws.

Writer: Jim McCann, Artist: Angel Hernandez, and Colourist: Fran Gamboa

Conan The Barbarian #18 - Marvel Comics

CONAN THE BARBARIAN No. 18, March 2021

Almost exclusively focusing upon the history behind the Tooth of the Nightstar, as well as the mystic blade’s malevolent hold over its long line of wielders, Jim Zub’s narrative for Issue Eighteen of “Conan The Barbarian” certainly contains just the sort of concoction of bloody duelling and magical machinations fans of Robert E. Howard’s Sword and Sorcery hero would probably expect. However, whilst this twenty-page periodical’s plot depicts some truly haunting images as to the hand-weapon’s forging, and its subsequent journey through the ages from warrior to warrior, it is arguably hard not to shake the feeling that much of the Joe Shuster Canadian Comic Award-winner’s storytelling would have simply been contained within a black-and-white double-splash illustration during the Seventies, rather than pad out an entire publication.

Indeed, large sections of this comic seem to be solely dedicated to just reshowing the reader the hallucinogenic influence the eternally-glowing foil has over the adventurer’s mind which has previously been seen in this distended tale’s previous instalment; “Now beset on all sides by horrifying creatures he can barely fathom the Cimmerian knows what he must do.” Such repetition undoubtedly reinforces the malignant power stored deep inside the living sword “liberated from the Uttara Kuru leadership”, but it also swiftly becomes a tad boring too, as Conan cuts a swathe through another supposed horde of demonic foes only to resultantly find himself staring upon a hapless caravan of badly-butchered innocent travellers.

Thankfully though, Zub’s lengthy flashback sequences do debatably still contain the odd gem of interest and innovation, with the writer penning a truly disconcerting death for the weapon’s maker at the hands of a goblin-like, hooded apprentice. This marvellously savage scene readily captures the treachery bound within the Tooth of the Nightstar, and is skilfully sketched by Luca Pizzari. In fact, despite the artist pencilling some astonishing panels packed full of sense-shattering combat, buckets of bodily gore, and eye-watering mutilations before it, the cowardly murder of this tale’s hulking blacksmith from behind whilst the bare-headed titan is busy tending to his infamous forge of tormented souls is the highlight of the Italian illustrator’s contribution to this comic.

Writer: Jim Zub, Artist: Luca Pizzari, and Colorist: Israel Silva

The Immortal Hulk #43 - Marvel Comics

IMMORTAL HULK No. 43, April 2021

Despite not containing much in the way of pulse-pounding pugilism, Al Ewing’s script for Issue Forty-Three of “Immortal Hulk” probably kept its audience somewhat entertained with its intriguing insight into just how Joe Fixit is “real good at staying alive” and Henry Gyrich’s recruitment of the U-Foes as Alpha Flight Space Station’s latest super-group. Indeed, witnessing Bruce Banner’s alternative personality working his way up from a penniless bum to a financially-stable nobody through numerous lucratively criminal means, genuinely provides a fascinating contrast as to how the Nuclear Physicist ordinarily survives on the streets whilst trying to keep a low profile.

However, that still doesn’t mean that the former “2000 A.D.” writer’s narrative actually makes much in the way of progress to this ongoing series’ overarching plot. True, the Fantastic Four wannabes’ efforts battling a Hulk-bot for their acting commander’s pleasure arguably provides this comic with some much-needed action. But even this scene is somewhat sedentary in its execution, as each member of the quartet demonstrates their own unique abilities one-on-one with the green-coloured automaton for the benefit of any bibliophile unfamiliar with Bill Mantlo and Sal Buscema’s creations from the early Eighties.

In fact, with the exception of Vector’s team finally confronting Banner’s alter-ego at the very end of this twenty-page periodical, the only real step forward this book’s storyline debatably takes is Shaman, Puck and Doc Sasquatch’s visit to Los Diablos in New Mexico. Somewhat dialogue-driven and pedestrian paced, the trio's superficial exploration of Shadow Base Site G at least leads to the revelation as to what happened to the Leader’s heavily mutated body following the facility's mass evacuation a few issues back, before their discovery is infuriatingly then cut short by this book swiftly shifting its focus back upon Fixit; “This ain’t that complicated. They’re lookin’ for me -- If they ain’t found me yet, it’s only ‘cause I ain’t makin’ noise.”

Fortunately though, what this publication lacks in its penmanship it somewhat makes up for with its pencilling. Joe Bennett’s depiction of the U-Foes literally dismantling Gyrich’s robot and subsequently incapacitating his “volunteers” with Tear Gas is very well visualised, as is the Brazilian artist’s excellent illustration of an emaciated Hulk tearing into a hapless patrol vehicle of the New York Police Department.

The regular cover art of "IMMORTAL HULK" #43 by Alex Ross