WINTER SOLDIER continues its heavy action in its own little corner of the Marvel Universe. The book's story and art just pours the fun all over your face.
The Good
Imagine Doctor Doom, Nick Fuy, Bucky Barnes and Black Widow all in the same room. Now imagine that scene with Ed Brubaker writing it, Butch Guice drawing it and Bettie Breitweiser doing the colors. It makes for a mighty fine comic. Just the first few pages were a blast to read and that was before the action even started.
I was a little unsure when I saw that Doctor Doom would be playing a role in this opening story but while it adds moments of humor, it also makes the story that much cooler. We don't often get to see Doom actually in action. During his time in the Future Foundation, it was a more subdued role. He sat back rather than dive into the action as he does here. Let's just say he gets a little brutal here.
If that wasn't enough, let's not forget that part of the mission is for Bucky to deal with the sleeper agents he trained back when he was brainwashed. What happens here needs to be seen. And the final pages are pretty heavy.
The Bad
As fun and great looking as this all is, I'm still not a fan of the Red Ghost, his apes or Lucia Von Bardas. This is the end of the arc. We'll have to see what Bucky has to face next in the coming issues.
There is that 'heavy' moment I mentioned above. This could have some serious consequences. Bucky made a decision and took some action that could change things in a big way.
The Verdict
It's the end of the first arc but the story's actually not quite over yet. The creative team of Brubaker, Guice and Breitweiser makes this a great and fun read while looking amazing each month. The opening scene with Doctor Doom, Nick Fury and Bucky was a joy and Brubaker delivered plenty of action for this team-up you never thought you'd see. As much as I've enjoyed this series so far, I've never been a fan of the Red Ghost and Lucia Von Bardas hasn't won me over yet either. Besides the action, there's also plenty of set up to see the consequences of the events that occur here. WINTER SOLDIER impresses me each month. It has a great disconnected feeling while still being heavily rooted in the Marvel Universe. This is the perfect atmosphere for a comic featuring Bucky as the Winter Soldier and while the world believes he's dead. It's no surprise that this title has remained at the top of my reading list each month.