Red Zone #4: This series is one of the few I've read where the tension just never wanes. Every page is as propulsive as the previous one.
We begin with Volkov sending another assassin after Crane, this time a cowboy-obsessed one named Maxim. Meanwhile, Deidre is trying to find a way to extract Crane and Nika. Abramov promises to keep them safe, and he and Randall take a walk through the deserted town surrounding Abramov's dacha, remembering the old times. Surprising no one, though, Abramov alerted Volkov to Crane's presence, and Deidre warns Crane just in time. Abramov asks Crane to forgive him as they are in "new days" but dies after drinking wine Belov poisoned. (This part is a little unbelievable, given that Belov had to plan for Crane arriving at Abramov's and Abramov serving exactly that wine to Crane at some point.)
Crane and Nika escape to the nearby town with Maxim in pursuit. Maxim is poised to kill Crane when, surprising me (and Crane), Vasiliev the cyborg and Milena the sniper stop him so they can kill Crane. Vasiliev kills Maxim, Milena shoots Vasiliev, and Nika kills Milena (quipping that she "didn't even need a special bullet," an allusion to Milena's rocket-powered bullets). A dying Vasiliev puts Milena's body in his lap and confesses that he loved her, wishing he had told her or she had noticed. He dies, and Nika confesses that she feels badly for them.
As the reader, I do, too. Abramov made it clear that they've all suffered under this new Russia, their years of "expense accounts" and "fancy suits" ended. Crane might've missed the old days but clearly built a new life for himself. Volkov, Vasiliev, Milena, and Abramov were all still living in the past, given how much better it was then the present. It's an example of Bunn's excellent writing where the "villains" aren't just revenge-motivated communists.
Speaking of Volkov, he arrives and engages in a fist fight with Crane. They both delight in the battle, to the point where Crane lets him live because he hasn't felt so alive in years. He pledges to return once he gets Nika out safely. The issue ends with Deidre and Nika watching Crane teach his class back in New York. Deidre asks Nika if she's going to tell Crane the truth, that he's her father, but Nika demurs. Deidre tells her that she's going to give him the last known location of Belov, signaling that they all know his days of "laying low" are over. Deidre is also Nika's handler now, so we're moving into "Alias" territory here, which I fully support.
Again, it was really a fantastic mini-series and I'm thrilled we're getting another installment. I can't recommend it highly enough.
Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #35: This issue is great, a return to everything I want this series to be.
T'onga sells the Edgehawk to pay her crew and hire her former boss, Khel Tanna of "Star Wars: Han Solo and Chewbacca" fame. She needs to find Boba Fett, whom she thinks can help restore Valance's memory. Tanna's associate, a Clawdite named Catak, starts a bar fight in the Bounty Hungers Guild Social Club, and Tanna hires the last two bounty hunters standing, Deathstick and a Gen'Dai named Surge.
On the Enigma Catalyst, Valance is trying to draw the faces he remembers, and Bossk snaps at a Clawdite who makes fun of Valance, warning him to let Valance grieve his loss. It's an interesting turn of events given these two guys were ready to kill each other last issue.
The raid on Boba Fett's hideout goes as poorly as expect, though T'onga gets over her fear of him and disarms him. (He is *smoking* hot here thanks to Medina and Prianto.) He agrees to help so long as they do a favor for him first, which I'm sure won't be complicated or dangerous at all.
Again, this series has been struggling for a while so I'm thrilled to see it find its footing.
Star Wars: Darth Vader - Black, White, and Red #3: This issue is probably the best of all these "Black, White, and Red," series.
Aaron's Vader story wraps up as expected, with Vader using his powers to take out Cyn and his allies. But it's Johnson's story of Vader using a transport full of Rebel soldiers' family members to destroy their base and Bernadin's of Vader forcing a Rebel spy to become a double agent to save her family (even if she could never speak to them again) that underscore how far Anakin fell.
I often struggle with depictions of Vader, because it's hard to see Anakin in there. But in both these stories you can see where Anakin's overconfidence - which we saw in "Star Wars: Yoda" #8 - leads him to play with his food, as he so often does, in his pursuit of order. It's unusual to get one story to push that point so elegantly, so it's a treat to get two doing so here.
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