Blastaar Is The Worst Party Guest Ever In Black Cat #5

This was supposed to be an easy heist. Get into the Fantastic Four’s home on Yancy Street, snag a book of hypothetical science while Johnny Storm was distracted, and be on their way. Nothing is ever easy for the Black Cat and her crew. It was bad enough when Sonny Ocampo showed up trying to arrest her, but now Blastaar crashed the party, bringing in some pals from the Negative Zone. Yeah, this could have gone better.

Black Cat #5 is all out chaos as this battle threatens to tear the Fantastic Four’s home apart. Fortunately, there are plenty of toys here to aid in this fight against Blastaar. With a few problematic jobs under her belt, it’s clear the Black Cat is resourceful. She uses her smarts to take down Blastaar in an awesome way.

Artist Travel Foreman builds to a showdown between the two, with the Negative Zone villain towering over Felicia. Letterer Ferran Delgado further defines this power differentiation, giving Blastaar a huge, booming voice that takes over the panel. When he speaks, people listen. While he has muscle, Felicia has the brains. What follows is an epic action, fast-paced action sequence that hits hard and doesn’t let up.

Even though this is a heist, which is traditionally done in the shadows, the colors in Black Cat #5 are bright. This is all happening in the middle of the day in the Fantastic Four’s house. Colorist Brian Reber shows the warmth in this home…before setting it on fire and practically destroying it.

This also comes together in a way that shows just how close-knit the Black Cat’s crew is. They are willing to die for each other, putting their lives on the line if it means most of them will make it out. I don’t know much else about her group aside from what I’ve learned from this series. Writer Jed MacKay has made a quirky team that has a nice mix of personalities.

While Foreman’s action work is top notch, the basic character forms feel a little off. I think this comes down to the inking. The pencils are a little too loose, like the bodies are missing key details. It gives the book a sketch-like tone at times.

Of course, you don’t make a mess in the Invisible Woman’s house and get off scott-free. She barges back in to see her home in shambles and she’s understandably angry. I love her facial expressions and speech as she immediately throws the hammer down, more on Johnny than anyone else.

Black Cat continues to deliver a fun, overarching heist story broken up into smaller, quirkier tales that have spread across most of New York. After pulling off a job at the Sanctum Santorum and the Fantastic Four headquarters, what could she possibly do next? Avengers Mountain? Krakoa? The list goes on and on and I can’t wait to see what’s coming up next.

Black Cat #5 from Marvel Comics is currently available at your local comic shop and digitally through ComiXology and Amazon Kindle.