Review by Tim Sheridan
Story Title: Buttons
Writer: Brian K Vaughn
Penciller: Goran Sudzuka
Inker: Jose Marzan Jr
Letterer: Clem Robins
Colorist: Zylonol
Cover Artist: Massimo Carnevale
Asst Editor: Casey Seijas
Editor: Will Dennis
Published by Vertigo/DC Comics
When I saw that this was a stand alone flashback (for the most part) issue, I was prepared to be disappointed. The impatient man in me just wanted the storyline to keep progressing. No need to flashbacks, just keep going. But I was wrong. This was by far one of the most engrossing issues of this already outstanding series. It hadn’t occurred to me until this issue that we hadn’t seen the origin of Agent 355 yet, but it’s a great little tale, not at all cliché, and very compelling.
We follow Agent 355 through various instances in her life, and like any simple origin story, we see how she became the woman she is today. Each time period is colored in a different palate, so without slowing things down, we know that time is progressing. It’s a simple tactic, but it totally works.
The art is by Goran Sudzuka, who is seemingly the “regular guest artist”, and it works perfectly. Sudzuka gives the art his own style, without veering to far from Pia Guerra’s regular work.
I’ve spent a lot of time in other reviews for this book explaining just how good it is, so I’m not going to waste any more time here. But needless to say, you really should be picking this up. Other than the great flashback scenes, this issue is bookended by a shocking scene of all the main characters running away from cannibals. We have no idea what is going on, but once again, Vaughn does the perfect job of getting us to come back next month.
