REVIEW: Invincible #73

The war against the Viltrumites heats up, but the heavy hitters are sidelined. What will the heroes do to win the day?

INVINCIBLE #73
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artist: Ryan Ottley
Inker: Cliff Rathburn
Colorist: FCO Plascencia
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Editor: Sina Grace
Publisher: Image Comics

Previously in Invincible: On the way back to the planet Talescria, the envoy of heavy hitters was ambushed by a Viltrumite strike force lead by Conquest. In the ensuing chaos, Omni-Man, Young Omni-Man, and Invincible are brought down on a distant and barren planet, where Invincible appeared to kill Conquest at the cost of Mark’s disembowelment.

STORY COMPRESSION

Robert Kirkman has a odd tendency to write his story arcs in a series of decompressed and compressed events. As the war against the Viltrumites reaches its launching point, Kirkman decides to take what appears to be six months worth of events and compress them into a single issue. While the battle waging on distant planets and far off places isn’t a huge element of the story – except for the fact that certain setbacks are happening because the big three are missing, I still find it odd that everything is being shoved into a series of short moments in time.

The more interesting story is Mark’s recovery. While Invincible is unconscious the entire issue, the recuperation period gives Omni-Man and Oliver a chance to bond and learn about each other. It also gives Oliver a chance to grow in size and strength, which does make for a nice story moment in a time of chaos.

While there is some question as to whether Conquest is really dead this time, there is no question that there is a traitor among the coalition of planets, and if the trio do not return to action soon, I have a feeling they – and the readers – are going to be in for an even bigger surprise in the next couple of issues.

BLOOD AND GUTS

I guess I never really paid attention to how graphically over the top Ryan Ottley’s art was when he began working on the series, however over the last year, the amount of blood and guts in the series has been on the increase. When it comes to evaluating the art, the detail Ottley puts in to the gory moments highlights how good an artist he is. Others will gloss over or minimize the after effects of a major battle by reducing an evisceration to a pool of black liquid and random chunky bits while Ottley embraces the chance to explore the real nature of what it means to be gutted by a super-being from another world.

BOTTOM LINE: BUY IT

Invincible is one of those titles that rarely cracks the top 150 titles sold in a month, which is disheartening because it is a series that has solid characters, great writing, and fabulous art. While this issue isn’t a jumping on point, for those that have been following the series even remotely, it’s worth buying and earns 3.5 out of 5 Stars.

Rating: