WRITER:Â Paul Levitz
ARTIST(s): Jim Fern, Ron Wagner, Joe Rubinstein, Wayne Faucher, José Marzán, Jr
LETTERER:Â Tom Napolitano
COLORIST:Â Paul Mounts
COVER ARTIST(s):Â Aaron Lopresti, Paul Mounts
PUBLISHER:Â DC Comics
RELEASE DATE: 05/27/2015
The oft-forgotten second team of superheroes, formed shortly after the Justice Society, the Seven Soldiers of Victory are definitely one of the best superhero teams in comics. Green Arrow, Speedy, the Crimson Avenger, Stripesy, the Star-Spangled Kid, Vigilante, and Shining Knight. Two archers, the only kid-hero/adult-sidekick duo, an Arthurian knight, a gun-totin’ cowboy, and a classic spandex-clad do-gooder. What’s not to like?
This issue is a mixture of emotions for me. On one hand, it’s a nostalgic trip to a Golden Age team that unfortunately got forgotten in over 75 years of DC history. On the other, it’s a bit dry at quite a bit of times, and it doesn’t bring much more to the table than the first issue brought. And at least the first issue had the advantage of having Green Arrow, and more importantly Speedy (Roy Harper), be in it, and boy do I like my archers. But this issue, whilst continuing the narration on the behalf of the unlikely narrator Scribbly Jibbet, didn’t progress much. I mean, sure we got some fight scenes with the Qward invaders, and some great last-stand moments with Vigilante and Crimson Avenger, but all in all, this issue was a bit bland, which is surprising, since a Crisis on Infinite Earths-type crossover between a Golden Age team of not super-powered heroes fighting aliens should be intense as all hell.
The art was quite similar to the writing in that regard. It wasn’t bad; it wasn’t stunning. I was a bit surprised when reading that there were so many pencillers/inkers, that the art remained consistent throughout. Unfortunately, this consistent art remains equally common throughout the issue. And while the coloring doesn’t detract from the overall look for the book, it doesn’t add anything. As with some of the writing, and most of the pencils/inks, the colors are rather normal.
All in all, I love these characters, and that’s why I guess I wanted more from this issue. While the first issue of this series was all kinds of fun, and starred some of my favorite characters, this issue was rather bland (yet somehow kind of sad at the same time) for an ending to these age-old characters. Readers who love this classic team might find some pleasure in powering through this comic, but all in all, it makes for a rather forgettable book to the average reader. Which is unfortunate, because this team really is awesome.
[wp-review]
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- Cedbill is a Las Vegas-based writer who is the founder and head editor at Coast Comics. He currently writes Phantom Squad, Mars Leighton, and Freedom Rave.
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