Carey continues to let Suicide Risk slide down further. It’s not a terrible issue, though the stuff with Requiem fighting his family and then leaving them when the mind control villain shows up is dumb. It doesn’t make any sense, but then Carey’s never known what to do with the family.

There are some flashbacks to the villain world too. A bunch of supervillains having a battle with some nameless, indistinct good guys. Presumably.

The issue doesn’t show any real signs of life until the end, when Carey moves from a flashback at Requiem’s trial to the mind of Leo Winters. Having the protagonist share his mind with a supervillain should provide some good moments. It doesn’t.

Worse, Carey establishes the mind control villain so well the character should have been the series’s narrator for the whole thing.

Carey’s trying to develop past the initial hook and he’s got nothing.

C+ 

CREDITS

Seven Walls and a Pit Trap, Part Two; writer, Mike Carey; artist, Elena Casagrande; colorist, Andrew Elder; letterer, Ed Dukeshire; editors, Dafna Pleban and Matt Gagnon; publisher, Boom! Studios.

Leo–see, only took me ten issues to remember his name–is now under control of his other-dimensional evil self who’s trying to figure what’s happened. I can’t quite remember the fill-in explaining everything, but the villains are just criminals brainwashed and dumbed on regular Earth?

There’s a lot of megalomania interior monologue for Leo. Carey pretty much does him as an evil Superman, which gets boring fast. It’s not even interesting for a whole page, I don’t think.

One of the bad guys might know what’s going on and it seems like the daughter’s powers will finally get explained but if they were transported there, how did the brainwashers set up the marriage. Is the wife brainwashed too?

All of these questions and more will undoubtedly be answered in a vaguely interesting, but not really compelling way.

Carey’s got too many ideas in Risk and no restraint.

C+ 

CREDITS

Seven Walls and a Pit Trap, Part 1 of 3; writer, Mike Carey; artist, Elena Casagrande; colorist, Andrew Elder; letterer, Ed Dukeshire; editors, Dafna Pleban and Matt Gagnon; publisher, Boom! Studios.

Casagrande’s getting really good. Suicide Risk is developing a new style, especially with how Carey is developing the characters. There’s a lot of good moves this issue, not just with Leo–his family even figuring in (finally)–but with the supporting cast and where the series is going.

In fact, it no longer feels much like Risk. Something about the cliffhanger reveal this issue reminds a lot of how Carey uses cliffhangers in Unwritten. It might just be a coincidence, but it feels like Carey is altering how he’s telling this comic to match other successful devices from his other series.

Regardless, it’s a great issue, probably the best due to the way Casagrande’s style has matured and Carey giving the series it’s first real twist. The way Carey leads up to it, keeping the reader a little removed… it’s masterful.

Risk might have real legs on it after all.

B+ 

CREDITS

Writer, Mike Carey; artist, Elena Casagrande; colorist, Andrew Elder; letterer, Ed Dukeshire; editors, Dafna Pleban and Matt Gagnon; publisher, Boom! Studios.

The first half of the issue is a lot better than the second. The second is why you don’t try to do an action scene as talking heads.

Carey opens with a lot of status updates. Leo’s kids, the United Nations, Leo and the supervillain lady having their morning after scene; Carey is catching up with a lot and juggling a lot and it works out.

But then there’s the scene with Leo and his new supervillain friends by the pool. There are also bombers about to nuke them or whatever and so Leo has to coordinate the team. It’s rather boring stuff, Leo on the ground, instructing people, quick panels showing the people carrying out instructions. The twist at the end is inexplicable and contrived.

It’s a strange issue. The first half shows Carey’s giving Risk legs, but the second makes it seem like he doesn’t know it’s going.

CREDITS

Nightmare Scenario, Part Three; writer, Mike Carey; artist, Elena Casagrande; colorist, Andrew Elder; letterer, Ed Dukeshire; editors, Dafna Pleban and Matt Gagnon; publisher, Boom! Studios.

I finally remember the lead character’s name–Leo–though I don’t know why. Maybe because his name becomes so unimportant in this issue, as it becomes clear Carey does have some alternate reality reveal planned out where the protagonist was a supervillain already.

It doesn’t really matter, though. The family stuff in the comic is its worst aspect. The rest of it, the stuff with the supervillains taking over a state in Mexico and declaring themselves absolute rulers… it’s okay. It’s not great, but it’s okay. Carey’s not treading unexplored territory but at least he’s taking a slightly different path of “realistic” superheroes.

Casagrande doesn’t do very well on the big military engagement at the start of the issue and there’s something off about her attack on the Mexican city. The grand scale seems to escape her. The more confined scenes are a lot better.

It’s a decent enough issue.

CREDITS

Nightmare Scenario, Part Two; writer, Mike Carey; artist, Elena Casagrande; colorist, Andrew Elder; letterer, Ed Dukeshire; editors, Dafna Pleban and Matt Gagnon; publisher, Boom! Studios.

Apparently all Carey needed to do with Suicide Risk to sustain the comic was send it to Mexico. This issue is another strong one, maybe even the best so far in the normal series. I even remember the lead’s name is Leo; I usually forget somewhere during the issue.

There are more bad guys who show up, but Carey doesn’t go overboard introducing them. There’s not a lot of nonsense with Leo as a cop, just as the protagonist in over his head. Carey’s not trying too hard to fit in the exposition. And the annoying family is only in it for a few pages.

The issue hints at a whole lot. The super powered people are maybe shadows of other people–their real selves–something along those lines. Hopefully it’s not The Matrix. There’s a demon from Hell, however, so who knows… anything’s possible.

I hope Carey can maintain.

CREDITS

Writer, Mike Carey; artist, Elena Casagrande; colorist, Andrew Elder; letterer, Ed Dukeshire; editors, Dafna Pleban and Matt Gagnon; publisher, Boom! Studios.

So Carey has his best issue and Casagrande has her worst.

One of the nuttier supervillains whisks the protagonist off to her temple and Carey spends half the issue introducing some really dense mythology into the comic book. He also explains some of how the protagonist’s powers work–and lets a couple of his friends know about them.

The mythology gives way to problem solving, which leads to a fantastic conclusion. Unfortunately, Casagrande draws the protagonist rather awkwardly. He’ll occasionally appear squat in the talking panels. It makes the entire comic, even with the stronger art in other places, seem ugly and cheap.

Sadly, the one thing Carey doesn’t do well is bring in the protagonist’s family. They’re still a pointless addition to the comic as he doesn’t interact with them. He talks about them, yes, but Carey’s just using them as damsels in distress.

Still, best issue to date.

CREDITS

Writer, Mike Carey; artist, Elena Casagrande; colorist, Andrew Elder; letterer, Ed Dukeshire; editors, Dafna Pleban and Matt Gagnon; publisher, Boom! Studios.

I’m getting really sick of Carey’s cliffhangers. He doesn’t have a good resolution for the previous issue’s and then he has another weak one here. He’s introducing a bunch of information this time in the cliffhanger, presumably to encourage one to come back next time….

It’s maybe the third expository diarrhea this issue. It’s incredible how much exposition Carey has here; over and over and over. But never about the single interesting thing–the protagonist’s superpowers cause his brother’s husband to lose his voice. No explanation why, even though the protagonist (his name’s not memorable) seems to know.

There are some really good moments throughout, but Carey is avoiding way too much. His pacing on the series isn’t paying off and all his conversations are contrived for expository purposes.

The problem is Carey’s approach. He’s spending too much time on the villains instead of his protagonist.

The comic’s not gelling.

CREDITS

Grudge War, Part Two; writer, Mike Carey; artist, Elena Casagrande; colorist, Andrew Elder; letterer, Ed Dukeshire; editors, Dafna Pleban and Matt Gagnon; publisher, Boom! Studios.

Carey really needs to work on his cliffhangers for Risk. He passes up an interesting one–the protagonist’s wife wondering about him talking to a woman in his sleep–for a common one. Supervillain fight leading to an explosion, the standard, in other words.

It’s as though Carey knows all he has to set the comic apart is the protagonist being a dedicated family man–there’s a really forced moment when another cop refers to the family as his “blessings”–but he also doesn’t want to tell that story. Instead, he wants to have his protagonist hunt down the bad guys and get into big, action-packed fights.

But the comic’s still decent, even if it feels undercooked. Carey’s a good writer, even when he’s forcing, and there are some interesting moments. For example, the protagonist’s superpowers has a side effect–he repulses water.

It’s still too soon to tell.

CREDITS

Grudge War, Part One; writer, Mike Carey; artist, Elena Casagrande; colorist, Andrew Elder; letterer, Ed Dukeshire; editors, Dafna Pleban and Matt Gagnon; publisher, Boom! Studios.