Comic Book Reviews (Week December 22, 2021): SWORD Issue 11, Catwoman: Lonely City Issue 2 & More!

Welcome to my comic book review round-up for the week of December 22, 2021. I will be talking about SWORD issue 11, Catwoman: Lonely City issue 2, Ms. Marvel: Beyond the Limit issue 1, and more!

Let’s begin with Catwoman: Lonely City issue 2 – written, drawn, colored, and lettered by Cliff Chiang. It’s not easy to continue the momentum after a bombastic debut issue, but Chiang was able to accomplish that and more in the second installment. Selina wants to break into the Batcave but it’s easier said than done. I liked how her initial plan didn’t work out and she had to think of another way to gain access.

We got introduced to older versions of more iconic characters willing to help Selina. I liked the story’s take on an older Poison Ivy. She’s finally doing what she’s passionate about instead of wanting to destroy humans in the process. Also, can Ivy really grow old? Due to her plant-like anatomy, I think she should be able to regenerate herself into a younger self if she wanted to.

The older Riddler’s interaction with Selina also made for a nice moment. I wouldn’t mind Selina training the Riddler’s daughter. The old guard has to prepare the new generation to be ready for the future.

The politics involved in the narrative were handled well. It’s Two-Face vs Barbara Gordon to determine the next mayor of Gotham and you know Harvey isn’t going to play fair.

As for certain readers saying that the title doesn’t make sense because Catwoman has allies for support, I mean, as far as I can tell, Gotham will always feel like a “lonely city” to Selina with Bruce gone. It doesn’t matter how many friends she has around her.

Does it have obvious queer characters? Yes.

Recommendation: PICK IT UP!

Ms. Marvel: Beyond the Limit Issue 1

Kamala Khan is back with a new solo 5-part miniseries. Written by Samira Ahmed, the current story has Kamala facing some multiverse shenanigans. I liked how the debut issue opened with a refresher about Kamala’s powers. Yes, she’s able to manipulate her size. However, the source of her power is linked to borrowing matter from her future self and returning said matter when she’s back to her normal self.

In my opinion, Ahmed got Kamala’s inner voice right. We also got introduced to a new cousin named Razia. She’s very smart and I hope she appears again in this story. As for Kamala getting stuck in a weird Bollywood-centric reality after helping Razia, Loki might offer some help. The two have worked together before. So, let’s see.

Now, there’s a rumor that the current miniseries will rework Kamala’s powers to connect them with the energy-based powers she will have in the upcoming live-action series. Here’s to hoping the rumor isn’t true.

Does it have obvious queer characters? No.

Recommendation: PICK IT UP!

SWORD Issue 11

From writer Al Ewing, SWORD issue 11 brought the current series to a satisfying conclusion while leaving the door open for some very interesting future developments. Abigail Brand has basically gone crazy. She doesn’t care about Krakoa. Due to being a character who always looked at the bigger universal picture, her having issues with mutants wanting to focus on Earth and Krakoa made sense. However, I do think her plans won’t pan out the way she’s expecting them to.

As for Storm’s involvement, SWORD issue 11 gave Storm fans a tasty treat. With the mutants on Arakko having to face the formidable and durable Lethal Legion while also protecting Empress Xandra, the Queen of Sol took matters into her own hand to demonstrate why she’s the Omega of the Omegas! I loved how Ewing displayed Storm’s ability to create incredible pressure to take out the entire Lethal Legion in an instant.

SWORD issue 11 gave readers a reminder about just how much power Storm’s able to wield and why she can’t allow herself to unleash her true potential. Due to having a mutant ability capable of easily covering an entire planet, Storm’s focus continues to be extraordinary. Creating a bunch of hurricanes was easy for her.

However, summoning a hurricane while ensuring people and the surrounding property remained safe required focus. Her pressure feat in the current issue was another example of that. Due to Storm, technically, being a force of nature that’s meant to be free and without any allegiance to a particular group, trying to contain the immense pressure in a targeted area took a toll on her body (the nose bleed) because she didn’t want to hurt her allies. She also didn’t want to outright kill her opponents.

With Ewing writing the upcoming X-Men Red comic book, I hope we get to see Storm unleash her true fury soon! Storm’s abilities are being recorded to create beings powerful enough to defeat her. So, it will be interesting to see how she beats her future enemies again because as an Omega she has no limits. Fingers crossed that Ewing taps into her Godhead, too. 

Does it have obvious queer characters? No.

Recommendation: PICK IT UP!

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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