Review: Infinite Frontier #6 (of 6)

There are times when I absolutely hate the hobby of reading comic books. Too often I get caught up into an event, only for it to have to lead somewhere or even somewhen else. When am I going to learn? DC’s recent event aka delaying tactic in order for you to buy more books, comes to an end this week. I will say that unlike some event books, Infinite Frontier has been quite pacy and shipped on time, so that’s something.

Darkseid stands revealed, his plan in full motion thanks to Psycho Pirates manipulation of the Flash, a Black Lantern ring and a crack in the Multiverse. Justice Incarnate plus a host of heroes that doesn’t include the regular JLA but does the JSA stand with Flashpoint Batman and President Superman with the fate of the Multiverse in the balance!

Never a big Flash fan, I previously didn’t give Joshua Williamson much attention. However over the last few months, Williamson’s presence has been on the rise. Infinite Frontier, when it started felt like a minor event; possibly due to the number of Bat focus and product that DC produce every month. Williamson has managed to drop in a few surprises, the return of Power Girl for example and the Injustice Incarnate, yet some of these haven’t been full fleshed out. This is issue feels odd in the pacing also. It seems that the main story finishes halfway through, with some excellent focus on Jade and Obsidian though surprisingly not Alan Scott; what follows are various “ad” pages that hint at future stories down the line. Which will have impact, who knows and I hope that whatever happens is reflected in the characters own books; where has Green Arrow ended up as an example.

for the most part, the art has been pretty decent in this event, with a range of artists on hand to help mainstay Xermánico. This issue is all Xermánico and it is much the better for that. True, there is a kind of “in house” style in play, but for the most part everyone looks like they are supposed to. It’s the big fight issue, Xermánico does well keeping the facial details on point which is something that other artists loses in these sort of she-bangs. Romulo Fajardo Jr.’s colors remain one of the big positives in the whole series, not just in this book. With the Multiverse being the subject of the run, Fajardo Jr. gets to keep thing nice and normal, before delivering a cosmically epic scheme, which contrasts with the encroaching darkness. Letters are provided by Tom Napolitano, who has fun inverting the norm, creating whispers along with the more standard fare. For an action issue, there is a lot of talking and Napolitano does well to ensure that the letters and the art work well in conjunction.

For all the the perceived “stringing along’ that I feel is the main drive of this book, the series has been a fun slice of superhero life. Williamson has taken a bold step in focussing on characters that the more recent DC fans may not know, such as Jade, Obsidian and Chase. As an Ol’ Timer, I appreciate that Williamson is giving panel time to some of the forgotten cast of heroes. I just wish that these events actually had a conclusion. Still there is always next time……..

Writing – 4 Stars

Art – 4 Stars

Colors – 5 Stars

Overall – 4.5 Stars

Written by; Joshua Williamson
Art by; Xermánico
Colors by; Romulo Fajardo Jr.
Letters by; Tom Napolitano
Published by; DC Comics

Author Profile

Johnny "The Machine" Hughes

I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow

Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network