There is much to like in the launch of this new mini-series in Marvel's Dark Reign saga. For one a lot a stuff gets blown up and that's always a plus. Greg Pak has done a good job of creating instant tension and action. The art by Leonardo Manco is first rate. In many panels you can almost believe for a moment that you're sitting in a theater watching a movie. It's that good. Impressive attention to detail and the action sequences are especially well done.
In Volume One, we revisit War Machine, reborn for the post Tony Stark world. In the opening sequence, James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Starks former ally and best-friend, launches an attack from his space born satellite on a group of murderous mercenaries in Santo Marco. Let's just say that he wreaks total havoc on the bad guys and the action is superlatively spread out over several pages.
We here at The Informant try very hard not to reveal spoilers which would detract from the surprise and enjoyment you deserve when reading a comic we recommend or even one we don't recommend. After all, Captain America died so you could have the right to read even bad comics if you want. So as the story unfolds, Rhodey meets up with some old friends, old enemies, new enemies and enemies who used to be friends. All the while getting blown apart and put back together like a Transformer on acid.
The current trend in Multi-verse spanning comic stories, is one I've found myself enjoying on many occasions. However, in character universes as broad and dense as Marvel and DC, it can be a challenge to keep all the divergent plots and characters straight. Who is fighting who? Is she a good girl or a shape-shifting bad guy? And while the
Dark Reign concept is off to a good start in most of the verse spanning issues I've read, I'm hoping it doesn't fizzle out like
Civil War.
And so far I will say that the first two volumes of
War Machine offer a good beginning and I
think, if you're a true comics fan, when you see the final panel of Volume 2 you might just wet yourself. The story really gathers momentum in the second book and when you arrive at the end you realize this moment is one of the reasons why we love these books so much.
Problem 1 with War Machine Volumes 1 & 2: It's a good launch of what promises to be a an interesting mini-series. And if you're wondering, it offers no clues nor answers any questions regarding the whereabouts of Tony Stark or Iron Man.
Problem 2 with War Machine Volumes 1 & 2: It's a problem not necessarily specific to this book, but to these types of 'event' publishing in general. It's sometimes difficult to keep everything straight as you move from character to character and world to world.
