WildC.A.T.s #5

But Why Tho?

WildC.A.T.S #5 is a beautifully rendered storyboard for a summer action flick. Penned by the competent hand of Rosenberg, several characters get to get down and dirty, but it all looks big budget thanks to Segovia and Duce. The Soldiers’ battle is superb, and the colors are fantastic to behold. Even panels of Zealot, Fairchild, and Cray in Grifter’s apartment are lovely. Characters have just a twinkling of manga eyes; no one color comes in the same hue (see the reds in the Soldiers and others). Lighting is phenomenal. I know. You come to this book for hard antiheroes. And you get that. But boy, do they look spiffy doing their thing, even when they’re screwing up. As usual, I await this group to congeal into the WildC.A.T.S team fans know and love, but it’s fun watching things fall apart in stupendous fashion on the road to getting there. If you slept on this title, kindly wake up. This is a great run that is doing unique things with the Wildstorm cast, mixing them up and creating a new blend that is one volatile cocktail of drama and dark humor. WildC.A.T.S #5 is a good mystery over Grifter’s demise coupled with rocking action that is setting up a huge confrontation, and maybe, just maybe, we can get Grifter to roll over in his grave and join in.

The Comicbook Dispatch

WildC.A.T.s #5 is another great issue, the best of the series so far, with the perfect balance of James Bond-style intrigue and superhero action. Theres a great encounter between Superman and The Seven Soldiers of Victory and the mystery of Grifters death takes a fascinating turn. Highly recommended.

Lyles Movie Files

One thing writer Matthew Rosenberg has ensured is WildCATS is never boring or lacking in surprises. That might make for the occasional choppy script and subplot, but it balances out with a writer emboldened to have complete freedom with this property. (...) Rosenberg keeps the shock deaths and twists coming in a way that it doesn’t feel gratuitous. The dialogue continues to be sharp with well defined personalities for each character. Stephen Segovia and Christian Duce collaborated on the artwork. While their styles don’t naturally complement each other, they both handle different subplots making for easier transitions. Elmer Santos’ colors have an almost watercolor like look that blends in smoothly. WildCATS has been a pleasant surprise and continues to keep the shocking cliffhangers coming to keep readers hyped for the next issue.

The Super Powered Fancast

The Story: Rosenberg crafts an entertaining, action packed adventure in this issue. The story does a great job of moving the character stories forward while also bringing in new ones. I love the inclusion of Warblade and the conflict between Majestic and Superman was fantastic. I continue to enjoy how the series brings the Wildstorm characters face to face with the DC heroes. I cannot wait to see what happens next. The Art: Segovia and Duce deliver fantastic art throughout the issue. The action is visually thrilling and I love how the art styles complement each other.

Graphic Policy

WildC.A.T.s #5 takes all of that and just adds to the insanity as the Seven Soldiers, and especially Majestic, dealing with Superman who is interested in the hero who claimed he was from Krypton. Then there’s a certain classic character donning his costume adding to the bigger question as to what exactly is going on with the Seven Soldiers. And if that wasn’t enough, there’s the ending!? It all comes together for an issue that delivers a lot of action and throws in a lot of questions. Where Rosenberg’s story really stands out is the ability to just nail every scene and situation with exactly what it calls for. The WildC.A.T.s and Seven Soldiers are two very different personalities of a team and each is on full display here. One is a dysfunctional team but still a team and “friends”. The other is just a team where you can sense a seriousness and tension within. It all plays perfectly on the page making you like one so much more and want to boo the other. So much is helped by Stephen Segovia and Christian Duce who provide the art and make an appearance by Superman seem completely normal. With color by Elmer Santos and lettering by Ferran Delgado, the comic is great to look at delivering a lot of swift action and surprises. There’s also a solid delivery of jokes through body language. How characters stand, their face, their body language, all punctuates the moments and makes everything feel so natural. WildC.A.T.s #5 is another fantastic issue that just has so much packed in. There’s shock appearances, good fights, lots of humor, a bit of everything coming together to entertain. There’s so many directions the series, and characters, can go, it’s a series that keeps readers on their toes playing off of nostalgia but plotting a new path.

Geek Dad

The original Wildstorm comics were essentially fight books with some flashy art, so it’s not necessarily a bad thing that this book seems to be carrying on in that style. The problem is that it really doesn’t earn many of the more emotional scenes it often seems to be going for. The seeming death of Grifter early in the run lacks some of the emotional punch it was going for, owing to the fact that we really haven’t seen any of Grifter’s relationships fleshed out. The WildCATS having to split the cast with the new Seven Soldiers of Victory skews things as well, as the deluded Majestic takes up a lot of page time this issue. It’s not clear why he thinks he’s a Kryptonian, but his battle with Superman is probably the most dramatic scene of the issue. The reveal about exactly how Grifter might still be around is intriguing as well, leaving just enough interesting questions to keep me coming back to this over-the-top book.

ComicBook.com

The latest WildC.A.T.s feels like the weakest in that the lack of Grifter means that the massive cast shoulders the responsibility of the storytelling here. There are some interesting tidbits to be found though, specifically when it comes to the arrival of the Man of Tomorrow and his conflict with Majestic and Spartan. Rosenberg clearly has an intricate working knowledge of all things Wildstorm, it just becomes a tad tricky when the reader doesn't and is presented with a cast in the dozens. Still the charisma of the characters shines through here, making it a worthy addition to the new series if not a stellar one.