The Stop Button

Marshall finally takes care of his continuity issues. He starts the issue talking about the second plague, which rendered most of the humans mute. Obviously, this development doesn’t fit into all of the Apes continuity, but at least it explains the ground situation of this comic series.

This issue is a bridging issue, revealing certain things going on off panel during the last four issues. There’s also a mystery, but Marshall doesn’t concentrate on it. When the culprit is revealed, his identity is nowhere near as interesting as his motives… or the personal repercussions.

For a comic with such hideous artwork, Marshall’s Apes is affecting because it’s so cynical.

It’s also revealed religious fundamentalism is ruining the Planet of the Apes, a standard trope for the series. But Marshall executes that plot point well—and a lot more subtly than he could.

Marshall’s a rather creative plotter; his Apes works.