Reviewer: Tim Byrne
Story Title: Secret War: Part 1
Written by: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Brent Anderson
Colored by: Pete Pantazis
Lettered by: Cory Petit (Virtual Calligraphy)
Editor: Andy Schmidt
Publisher: Marvel Comics
I like Brian Michael Bendis, really I do. He writes some great stuff, like Ultimate Spider-Man, Daredevil and even the first arc of this book was pretty good.
But what is this stuff? He writes a mini-series called Secret War (which comes out every QUARTER, mind you) with the simply brilliant Gabrielle Del’Otto on art. That’s gone for three parts, and still doesn’t seem to have gotten into the real meat of the story.
But ah-ha! Look at the latest Pulse! ‘Secret War Part 1’! That’ll get the new readers in! Grrrr.
Anyway, Bendis takes the titular lead characters of The Pulse (Jessica Jones and Luke Cage) and shows us some heated-up left-overs from issue 3 of Secret War. Sure, its moderately interesting, but there is absolutely no hint on the cover or elsewhere that this is basically Secret War issue 3.5.
I’m very deliberately dwelling on the editorial decisions rather than the plot, because, the plot of Secret War is still open to debate and interpretation, and this issue doesn’t add too much to it.
The art is fine, but it’s a shame that there is apparently no more Mark Bagley on this issue, as I loved his nice clean look. Anderson’s pencil’s are much grittier, although I suppose that is more in keeping with the previous style of Alias (Back in the day).
As a reader of the Secret War mini, I’ll keep going, but Jessica Jones fans may be more reluctant.
