Review: ‘TerrorWar’ #4 Delivers Background At An Odd Time
by Tom Smithyman
It’s taken several issues to get some much-needed background information for TerrorWar.
We’ve known since the beginning of this limited series that a terrors began showing up in Blue City – literally people’s worst nightmares come to life. Only special terrorfighters with brain bullets could put them down. Or so they thought.
In addition to fleshing out some of that background, this issue reveals that central character Muhammed and his team of terrorfighters are the only ones who have actually been able to kill the walking nightmares. The other teams only unknowingly send the baddies on a pathway to regeneration so they eventually reform and return. Now Muhammed’s team is sent on a suicide mission to stop the source of the terrors
It’s unusual to get so much background in the middle of a limited series. If the series were ongoing, it might be natural to sprinkle nuggets throughout, but with a set ending approaching in a just a few issues, it gives the impression of bloat – that the first three issues took too much time establishing a story, which was going to change.
Writer Saladin Ahmed’s approach also runs the risk of turning off readers by not giving them enough information early on in the series. Still, the overall story is good enough to keep most of the audience coming back for more.
The artwork from penciller Dave Acosta and inker Jay Leisten is similarly inconsistent. There are beautifully crafted pages and panels. Characters’ faces are well articulated with aging lines, and the terrors are…well terrifying. Other images, though, lack detail. It would be somewhat understandable if they were all background figures in small panels, but sometimes even the larger images and splash pages have more rough renderings.
With the background now largely out of the way, the series should focus its remaining issues on advancing the story and getting to the bottom of the mystery of the terrors while sharpening the artwork. That will enable the creative team to stick the landing.
TerrorWar #4 is available for purchase at your local shop.
Overview
Exposition is a needed element for any story but delivering it in the middle of a limited series leaves readers with the impression that the first few issues were filled with bloat. The artwork is also inconsistent, alternating some great pages with some rougher panels and images.
