Breld has the documents; now he just needs to cross town with them while everyone is out to kill him. No big deal, right? Find out more in Heist, or How to Steal a Planet #7 from Vault Comics!

HEIST, OR HOW TO STEAL A PLANET #7

Writer: Paul Tobin
Artist: Arjuna Susini
Colorist: Vittorio Astone
Letterer: Saida Temofonte
Editor: Adrian F. Wassel
Publisher: Vault Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: October 21, 2020

Previously in Heist, or How to Steal a Planet: Glane Breld’s archenemy, Samuel Reven, has stolen away one of his team (Eddy Lets) by finding his long-hidden sister. Eddy turns on Breld, sniping at him and Gaville until Gaville messes with his smart bullets. Eddy also told Reven about the subplot with the judge, and she’s been hustled off the planet. Breld has a back up plan, this time involving Celene. They hack into the neural splint network and upload a cat video that subliminally turns people against Reven. But Reven decides to go one better and incite people to kill Glane!

THE LONG CHASE IS ON!

Glane Breld is on the run again at the start of Heist, or How to Steal a Planet #7. Buckle in – it’s an exciting ride full of twists and turns. Samuel Reven has got pretty much everyone hunting Breld down. Fortunately, he’s clever enough to escape most of them. Unfortunately, he picks up a brand (on his rear) along the way. This continues until Gaville comes along and disguises him, which finally gets him home, although his dog Horace doesn’t recognize him and attacks. Breld has all the paperwork he needs, but now he must deliver it to the courthouse in person.

Gaville has made him a robot he requested, and she steps out, although she also leaves him her makeup kit. The robot is a billie bird – Heist’s answer to pigeons, birds in huge numbers that poop on people and are a popular street food. Breld links to the robot through his brain splint, and while his body, guarded by the faithful Horace, falls into a stupor, his mind glides through the sky in the robot. After a bit of a flight, he arrives at Dignity Corporation and sneaks in. He downloads information on the latest seeker bullets and heads for home.

On his way back he happens to spot Reven and Eddy Lets and spies on them for a few minutes. He learns that Starling has been hired to kill him again. We also learn that Eddy was never interested in power, although Reven certainly is. It also comes out that Celene has been meeting secretly with the Crows. Breld arrives home realizing that his gang is fracturing almost as quickly as he put it together. So it’s off to the courthouse with the papers.

I love this next sequence. Breld has a long way to go, and first he has to do something about the fact that everyone is looking for him. He disguises himself as a mail department worker, in this world basically a drug courier. Everyone likes their mail deliveries, and he can wear a mask. He delivers a hundred packages which will jam Reven’s signals. Gaville advises him to do odd jobs to further his way. So he hawks sodas for a while, and then he’s a Bold Door hype boy dancing in the street, and finally he disguises himself as a Beetle Priest. This world is crazy imaginative.

And so it goes, with more problems thrown into his way as he makes his way through town. It’s one thing after another, but the flow is so good it is a sheer delight to read. And each problem he runs into is hardly the last one. It’s so much fun!

DISGUISES AND BILLIE BIRDS

Heist, or How to Steal a Planet #7 is a bit of espionage sandwiched between a couple chase scenes. Heist is an over-the-top world which has been building for several issues so that as we reach this one, we know the sky is the limit. We know things can get crazy, and it’s sheer enjoyment to see it unfold. The opening panels are funny because Breld is more than a match for a crowd of random people. This is the appetizer. The real chase comes later, when Breld is up against the professionals. There are little twists every couple pages. I love the panels with Piltdown.

I also enjoyed the scenes with Breld using the billie bird robot. Suddenly we’re seeing this world from up above, or at least at middling height. It gives us a different perspective on things, as well as neatly tying into a not unreasonable chance to spy on Reven a little bit and hear about his end of things. It’s also fun to see the upper strata of Heist, after spending so much time at ground level or below.

BOTTOM LINE:

Heist, or How to Steal a Planet #7 kicks things into high gear and is a super-entertaining read. Breld is smart, but so is Reven, so there is never a dull moment. It is such a pleasure to lose yourself in this book.

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