After last issue and the ease in which Galactus dispatches Dormammu the hits keep coming. First Nightmare then Satannish fall to the might of the World Devourer and all seems lost. But Strange has a plan. The ultimate plan that involves throwing everything at the problem. Silver Surfer cannot calm him. Black Bolt can’t stop him. Even Gladiator falls. As the Imperial Guard attempt to avenge their leader and more ex Heralds fail to stop their former master Strange knows the time is right for the final strike. But when the chaos clears he is stunned to find he is alone in a void, completely bereft of any sense of reality.
Review
Story/Characters: I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Forget War of Realms why wasn’t THIS the event of the year? So much scope for so many interesting angles and it was squandered on just restraining it into one title. Also I have to say there seems to be an element of the Rosenberg’s about this. All of the death of major characters is clearly going to be reversed and I don’t know what to make of it all. But one thing is for sure, the impact is not lessened by the way it all happens and the knowledge that those gathered are either already dead or in a situation that determines their obvious survival when all this is over. Writing: The impressive sight of the assembled heroes arriving to help is perhaps slightly diminished by everyone shouting their own battle cry, sounding more like Dick Dastardly singing Stop The Pigeon “Nab him, tab him, jab him, grab him”. Despite the drama and urgency of things I couldn’t help have a little laugh, though it felt a little unnecessary. Though it still doesn’t reduce the overall plight and impact of the unfolding drama. The level headed former herald Silver Surfer fails to break through to his former master in what appears to be an intervention of the Cosmic scale, as he tries to convince him he has become drunk on power. As Galactus goes on to devour Black Bolt it also becomes clear that genetically modified food is bad for you.And as always the Sorcerer Supreme and proposed protector of magic sacrifices everyone for the cause and makes deals with everyone he shouldn’t in an arrogant way and all to clean up a mess that’s essentially the result of his own mistakes. Without even any doubt he sees what he is doing as the only option. This final solution is clearly mirroring his one-in-fourteen-million options in the MCU. Art: And the titanic battle is clearly defined in the continued plight of those battling Galactus, be they enemy or ally to Strange. Everyone gives their everything in the effort to stall the World Devourer and the artistic team pull out all the stops in order to show how important this all is. And page after page some of the most powerful beings in the Marvel Universe fall one after the other like ninepins.And as Strange makes his final drastic move in the cacophony of images that shows the fall of the assembled combatants, it’s clear that Barry Kitson & Scott Koblish are revelling in the chance to go for it and give it their all. With every death and explosively concussive force blast they showcase their talent and make the failure of each fallen comrade resonate. Even while we know none of those lost will be impacted by events, it still manages to make the mortality rate feel of some import and added to the drama of the story Waid was trying to get across. Did I mention this should have been this years Marvel event??? And as always Jesús Saiz manages to give that cinematic feel to the story, with a cover that shows the heart and soul of the two main characters as well as the cosmic struggle for power in the overall drama.
Final Thoughts
Another epic instalment that deserves to be given more of a sprawl of an arena than the restrictive format of one title alone. Despite this injustice it still manages to make a large impact.
