drellassassin's Mass Effect: Foundation #4 - Part 4 of 13 review

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    Abysmal

    After the first issue of this series, I had high hopes. I never cared for Omar Francia's art, but the end's twist kept me interested. The 2nd issue was okay, but it seemed like it focused too much on Wrex rather than the main character. The third issue insisted on telling a story of Ashley's that didn't need to be told, while telling us nothing new about the series' lead.

    Enter issue #4. It now seems like the series' main character is simply going to be used as a framing device to tell origin stories for the various squad mates of the video games. Which for anyone who has followed the ME comics, all of them have been origin stories, which is disappointing since the ME universe is so vast and ripe for storytelling potential. This issue decides to tell a particular story from Kaiden Alenko's past, where he is at a school for biotics. The problem, or at least one of the biggest problems, is that the story moves at a breakneck pace, with characters spewing out expository dialogue faster than a crime show. Not once did I care about anything that was happening, and every character involved was incredibly dull. I expect a lot more from Mac Walters, who is the lead writer of the ME series. Worst of all, however, is the atrocious art. Tony Parker makes me wish Omar Francia was back on this title. Bodies are drawn at unnatural angles, faces are oddly distorted, and often times I found myself unsure of what was taking place due to some awkward angles. The colors from Michael Atiyeh don't do the art any favors either.

    I'm afraid this issue will be my last on the title. The end of the issue, which is the first time we see our "framing device" character, is so dull that I have no desire to read another page. The Mass Effect universe should be receiving the same in depth treatment that Star Wars does, but instead the creators are merely drumming up more origin stories and elaborating on stories that have been told in in-game conversations. Truly disappointing.

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