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Iceman and Bishop team up to investigate a new attempted mutant massacre of the Morlocks in the tunnels under New York. Is it a good read?
Posted in: Comics, Review | Tagged: alejandro giraldo, andy king, battlecats, cats, fantasy, mad cave studios, Mark London
Battlecats #2 Review: La Marqued for Death
The Battlecats, having survived the horde of killers, now face an old enemy: Eltoreq. Kaleera goes out to face him alone, but Eltoreq easily defeats the agile cat. Kaleera is badly hurt, but Vaela heals her. The team continues onward from here into the snowy mountainous region of La Marque. Creatures wander and crawl through the snow, so the Battlecats are far from out of danger here.
Battlecats #2 does little to improve on the first installment. The characters are still uninteresting fantasy archetypes, nothing is done with the fact that the characters are humanoid cats, and Mekkar the bard is still not funny.
The comic also makes the misstep of making death and bodily harm less meaningful early in this issue. I won't go into detail as to not spoil, but a mage character needn't be a cure-all for all injury.
The comic's deadly seriousness begins to work against it too. Even with the rampant bloodshed and maiming, it's hard to forget that these characters are humanoid cats. I'm not saying that can't be a serious story, but, if you're not focusing on a deliberate theme with the book, why not have a bit more fun?
Artist Andy King and color artist Alejandro Giraldo put in more good work in this issue. The Battlecats look awesome if nothing else. The armor is elaborate and cool, the characters are surprisingly expressive given their feline features, and the battle scenes are well-constructed. The colors are well balanced, though they could be a bit more vibrant and popping.
Battlecats #2 is another underwhelming issue to what could have been a fun and creative idea. The comic is too tame and straight-faced given its central idea of cat-people in a fantasy setting. It's not an especially bad read, but it's not compelling or especially entertaining either. Like the last book, I can't say to stay away, but I can't recommend it either.
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