Monsters Unleashed #5 (of 5) Review

It’s the Earth’s last stand against the final wave of Leviathons.  With the heroes having already fallen, can a kid named Kei save the day?  Your Major Spoilers review of Monsters Unleashed #5 awaits!

MONSTERS UNLEASHED #5
Writer: Cullen Bunn
Artist: Adam Kubert
Colorist: David Curiel and Michael Garland
Letterer: VC’s Travis Lanham
Editor: Mark Paniccia
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Cover Price: $4.99

Previously in Monsters Unleashed: “When giant monsters known as Leviathons start raining from the sky and wreaking havoc all over the world, it’s up toe the heroes of Earth to stop them…  Leviathon Servtitors, spied for the mother, infiltrated Parker Industries to attack Kei, but Spider-Man and other young heroes, alongside Devil Dinosaur, Moon Girl and Elsa Bloodstone, repelled the attacks.  Suddenly, the sky grew dark and green lightning arced through the clouds.  A giant creature landed in Manhattan — The Leviathon Mother had made Earthfall.”

FIGHTY FIGHTY TIME!

All seems dark for the Marvel Universe, as even the most powerful heroes have fallen before the onslaught of the Leviathon Mother.  The few remaining heroes (Spider-Man, Moon Girl, Bloodstone and others) have protected Kid Kaiju, who somehow seems to be the focus of the creatures’ wrath, but a wayward remark from Moon Girl turns the tide: Kei/Kid Kaiju realizes that he doesn’t just summon monsters that already exist, he is able to make his own creations come to life, and they prove capable of turning the tide against the monstrous mother-creature.  They even combine, Super Sentai-style, into a larger creature that puts the final touches on the beat down and ends the Leviathon threat once and for all.  As the issue closes, Kei and his family have a new home, a new protector in Elsa Bloodstone, and, of course, a new ongoing series, monthly from Marvel Comics!

SETUP FOR THE NEW ONGOING

I have to say, I’m kind of annoyed by how transparent a pilot this series has been, even as I have enjoyed parts of the concept.  After four issues of treating the monster menace seriously, Maria Hill flippantly mentions that Damage Control is on the way and that they’re going to have a field day with the worldwide carnage this crossover has caused.  I like Bunn’s plotting, I like Kid Kaiju in concept, but the execution is somehow off-putting to me as a reader.  Would I have had the same response if this were the first five issues of Kei Kawade’s ongoing series?  I think maybe not, but the question of whether or not it would have sold the same numbers would have to be asked as well.  Adam Kubert’s art is impressive, though, especially in his rendering of the old-school Kirby monsters, which helps to salve the pain of spending more than $20 on a backdoor pilot for Marvel’s new Next Big Thing.

THE BOTTOM LINE: THE GOOD STILL OUTWEIGHS THE BAD

All in all, even with my hesitation about the presentation and the hype about this book, I still found this an enjoyable reading experience overall, and Kubert’s art made the combat sequences (which are most of the issue, it must be said) really sing.  In short, Monsters Unleashed #5 has a lot to offer and adds another smart young hero to the Marvel Universe, which I’m all in favor of, leaving the book with a better than average 3.5 out of 5 stars overall.  I don’t know whether I’ll be picking up Kid Kaiju’s new ongoing series, but at the very least I know there’s potential for good stories to be told with Kei and his army of giant monsters…

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