Black Panther and the Agents of Wakanda #4: Dark Side of the Moon

Wow! Four issues in and this book continues to impress me. On one hand that’s sad. There was a time where FORTY issues in a book used to continue to impress me. One the other hand, it’s a pretty good accomplishment that a Marvel book has made it to issue #4, let alone be consistently good. Author Jim Zub continues his “God Loves, Moon Kills” storyline, which takes us on an unexpected ride this issue. It was a nice surprise when this issue takes a really sharp left turn, and it was one that was very surprising and totally unique. As a bonus, it ties into long-ago Marvel continuity, which is always fun. Hopefully, it motivates some comics fans into looking through some back issue boxes or at the very least, looking some things up on Comixology. Zub takes a fantastic story and expands it to really develop some of the characters on the team, and he’s doing it slowly, it’s not forced or rushed in the least. Most impressively, he does it without taking anything away from any of the other characters in the issue. While he manages to focus on a lot of characters doing many different things, he never manages to ignore the fact that Black Panther is the star of this book. Zub crafts a well-told story that finds a perfect balance of science fiction and superhero adventure. Very well told!

Artist Lan Medina and inker Craig Yeung give us a very good looking issue yet again. They design somethings that are a great mix of Wakandan technology and Stark/Avengers design. The poses and storytelling they use this month are very noticeable, and they’re much improved over their previous issues. This issue is not a talking heads book, by any means, but Medina and Yeung make some really bold, action-fueled poses that not only make you feel like you’re witnessing the action but that you’re a part of it. On every possible artistic front, this book is a winner.