Shatterstar #4 Unleashes The Warrior
by Tony Thornley
In the course of this miniseries to date, we’ve seen the protagonist as a humble self-made man, a driven detective, and a man on a mission. This issue unleashes Shatterstar to his full potential–a powerful, self-confident warrior.
Tim Seeley, Carlos Villa, Juan Vlasco, Gerardo Sandoval, Carlos Lopez, & Cory Petit put ‘Star face to face with the cause of all his problems, with a fantastic cover by Yasmine Putri.
In the wake of last issue, Shatterstar has brought the fight to the arena. There, he faces off against the Death Sponsors, and their employer, the Grandmaster. This puts him face to face against Gringrave, the woman he once loved.
Seeley once again switches things up this issue. Now that all the other pieces of the story are in place, this issue is basically cover to cover action. He’s still able to add plenty of emotional weight to it though, especially in the relationship between ‘Star and Gringrave. Without the build-up, the climatic moment of the issue would have fallen short.
Sandoval’s flashbacks take the backseat in this issue, giving the bulk of the story to Villa and Vlasco. They show their skill in composing the action, from the power shots of Shatterstar’s entrance to the arena to the duel between ‘Star and Gringrave. In the latter, they telegraph the outcome without spoiling it or making the moment overly melodramatic.
This miniseries isn’t going to be winning awards, but it’s a fantastic example of a fun, well-crafted action story. In that way, it’s really delivered.
Shatterstar #4 is available now from Marvel Comics.
