Blaise writes...

ISSUE #6: REUNION

SPOILERS!

I was unable to afford it until Saturday the 13th, by which time it had sold out of my local store. They assured me that they would have more by Tuesday the 16th. In the interim, I checked out "Ask Greg" and discovered the "page-16-art-for-12" error. In a way this was a blessing in disguise as it caused me to modify my plans--instead of buying two issues, I would now buy one copy of the misprint (keep it as a collector's item) and then purchase two corrected copies when they came out.
Of course, possibly because they WERE going back to the printers on this, my comic shop didn't get new issues on the 16th...or at any other time of the following week. They wound up overnighting a copy (the last one) from their Valley Branch because they're cool like that.

--I LOVED the first page of Angela. She looks good there. I just wish Purcell were more consistent with her. Overall, I liked his work--I found it a solid art style. However, he seems to have difficulty when it comes to Angela's face. The middle of the three horizontal panels on page 2 looks especially weird; more like the rictus grin of a corpse. I thought the middle panel on page 14 looked a bit off, too. It's a pity, because I rather enjoyed the rest of it.
--I love Lex's rather bitter "--all except Brentwood" in response to Angela's statement that "the clones have chosen good over evil." You can tell he's still upset by that.
--Nice to know Maggie's all right and Goliath is healing. Also we receive confirmation that their days of just hiding out in the castle are now over. Of course, this new development will undoubtedly bring its own problems.
--Brooklyn's still not too comfortable around the lovebirds. Did anyone else notice that while she was holding hands with Broadway she had her other hand on Brooklyn's shoulder? No wonder he took off in such a hurry.
--I laughed out loud at page 3. Behold: "Alexander (Thailog) the Great!" Okay, okay, so Alexander wasn't a Roman, but COME ON! It's too perfect! I loved the ice swan and Thailog's "leisure attire" (white and red seems to be his favorite motif). And Shari feeding him grapes…I guess he figures if he's got to have a #9 as his "Executive Assistant" he might as well enjoy it.
--Shari's definitely an interesting character. I look forward to learning more about her.
--The skiff showing up in the giant laundry tub would be the second time I laughed out loud. I mean seriously, how else do you beat a swimming pool for a unique body of water? I loved Elisa's asking to skip this particular adventure and see if Avalon needed them someplace else…like Hawaii. The cut to her "Guess not" was a great follow-up.
--The Gargoyles mistaken for Yeti is kind of funny, though I agree with Master Dawa; Sangpo should not be so hasty in his actions or judgments. Dawa gets some of the best lines, of course, but since others have already noted them, I shall not repeat them. Suffice to say, he has been presented as an interesting character and I look forward to seeing more of him.
--I loved the top panel of page 7, specifically, Goliath carrying Elisa. Don't ask me why, it just struck me.
--"Jalapena"...of course. Should I really be surprised?
--Cloak or no cloak, I figured that was Coldstone.
--The page 12 mistake was pretty obvious, especially the first and last panels. Having seen the REAL page 12, thanks to the efforts of you, Greg, as well as Greg X. and SLG, I have to say I really like Coldstone's expression in the last panel. I don't remember when I've ever seen him look that happy.
--I really liked the "pan in" on Coldstone's red eye for the quickie back-story on the Cold Trio. It especially manages to definitively explain what Coldstone is, and it sets up Coldsteel for his later appearance. "Unspeakably evil," eh? Interesting.
--Oddly enough, I suspected Coldstone was faking his possession from the beginning. In the past, his switches between personalities have always been a little more...well, obvious. Here it happened too quickly. There were some times, however, when he made me doubt. That one line, "I wonder if in this century human necks make the same noise when they snap" was especially chilling.
--Angela broke his arm-cannon! I wonder when and how he fixed it. Also, he has one HECK of a stun attack. Haven't seen him use that one before. It is a little odd for it to be coming out of his eye (at least, that's what it looks like), but it's still visually impressive.
--Coldstone's actually quite poignant in this last bit on page 21. I like his sad expression and the close-up of Angela when Coldstone mentions his children's safety (which to me reinforces the idea of "Rookery Parentage"). On that note, I'm a bit surprised by how quickly and easily Gabriel's parentage was revealed.
--They wake up on the shores of Shambalah (leaving me with a Three Dog Night song stuck in my head) and then Shari (and through her, YOU, Greg) cuts us off. DAMMIT! And just how the heck does she know this story anyway?
--Thailog enjoys a cup of wine and a maniacal laugh. Strange how he refers to Coldstone as his "uncle." Just another indicator of how Thailog doesn't really think like a gargoyle, I guess. Then Shari has to tease him (and us) with a few tantalizing hints leaving Thailog in a towering rage as he turns to stone. Why do I have an image of a cat sitting just outside the reach of a dog's chain? Illuminatus or not, she better not test the strength of that chain too much.
--I, too, am intrigued that Thailog's clothes did not turn to stone with him. I guess he really is more at home in battle armor.
--Hey, we finally see the Scarab Corporation's name (or at least most of it) in a canon story!
--This was my (censored) reaction to Coldsteel's appearance in the final page: "HOLY FREAKING SHOOT!" Oh, Xanatos is up to something. Gotta say, though, he doesn't look too happy to see Coldsteel.

Overall: Is it at the same level of the last three comics? Well, maybe not. But it's well done, it filled in a bit of a story we've only heard about for a decade, and it whetted my appetite for the next story arc. You go, Greg!