Review: Hypernaturals #8 by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning

Reviews

Hypernaturals_08_CVA

Review:  The Hypernaturals #8

Published by Boom! Studios

Written by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning

Art by Tom Derenick and Andres Guinaldo

Coloured by Stephen Downer

The Plot

We begin with Thinkwell’s orientation into the Hypernaturals team as he joins Clone 45, Shard, Stellerator, Prismatica, and Haint.  He is goaded by Clone 45 and before the situation escalates Haint stops them with a pretty sweet ability.  Back in the present, Sublime and “Sublime” are engaging in an all-out battle, which is endangering Thinkwell, Shoal, and Clone 21 who are almost exposed in Side-Space.  Thinkwell tells them what will happen if their shield completely dissipates.  He finds a way to ingeniously repair the shield, but also sees a new threat looming as a result of the battle of the Sublimes.  Meanwhile in the Repository, the guards are getting taken apart by the enemies from the previous issue.  Bewilder uses her abilities effectively to deal with them.  Another major problem surfaces, which requires the attention of both Shoal and Bewilder.  Clone 45 is left to deal with the enemies alone as they find what they’re looking for.

The Breakdown

This was an action-packed issue and it was full of great moments.  Seeing what Sublime was capable of made him even more threatening as he was literally ripping up space around him.  Seeing Thinkwell’s first meeting up with Clone 45 was funny because he addressed the matters in a straightforward way that had no social tact whatsoever.  Also, we finally get to see how Thinkwell was able to leave his planet in order to join the Hypernaturals team.  I enjoy seeing how he finds new ways to utilize his abilities.  He has also been showing some compatibility with Shoal as he is taking him under his wing and showing him how to utilize his abilities at a higher level.  Once again we are introduced to a new character and they manage to get me interested in them even with such little screen time.  Haint is a character I hope to see more of in the future.  In each issue we seem to get one character that really shines during a situation and this time we finally get to see the leader, Bewilder, do her thing.  I like how well she plays the veteran role and knows how to handle different situations.  I want to see what Clone 45 does next issue as he dives head first into danger.  The write-ups at the end of the issue were useful as they explained some things that needed explaining.  I’m also glad that they don’t go against the page count.  One thing that I’ve noticed is that Derenick’s art has improved since his earlier issues in the series.  It’s not that they were bad, but I like his layouts and inks more in the past few issues.  Downer’s colours had some very nice effects in this issue and he really made some of the scenes pop.  This issue was more action-heavy so there isn’t as much to write about, but it was well-executed.  I expected another solid read this month and I wasn’t disappointed.

BUT…

I hope there’s a good explanation for the bad guys’ ability to get out of their predicament near the end of the issue.  It seemed a little too easy considering that such artifacts of great magnitude are being held there.  If the Hypernaturals weren’t there then they would’ve achieved their goal in a matter of minutes.

Buy It, Borrow It, Shelf Read It, or Ignore It?

Buy It.  Easily one of the best new series in 2012.  So much has been covered in just 8 issues and I continue to absolutely enjoy Abnett and Lanning doing their own thing.  I never rush through this comic as I just sit back and ensure that there are no distractions while I’m reading it.  It’s one of the books that I enjoy the most right now and I’ve said it before, but I have to say it again:  Thank you FCBD! Otherwise I might have missed out on this one.  Free Comic Book Day this year is on Saturday, May 4, 2013 and chances are good that you’ll find a gem somewhere in all of the books being offered.

I have been both an avid and casual comic reader over the years (depending on the quality of books). I have been reading Comics Nexus even prior to it becoming Comics Nexus and am glad to be a columnist. In addition, feel free to leave comments whether you agree or disagree because it always leads to discussions.