Written by Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
Illustrated by Javier PinaStan Lee is joined by Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning on the year’s most exciting new superhero series. In the aftermath of last issue’s epic battle, SOLDIER ZERO finds himself hated by the public, and Stewart finds himself more confused than ever– while a new threat emerges! A perfect jumping on point for new readers as Stan Lee drives SOLDIER ZERO full speed ahead.
Paul Cornell is off the book now, but in his place comes the mighty duo of Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning. You might know them from the epic Marvel cosmic adventure they’ve been telling since 2006, which not only makes them the perfect duo to take on a new sci-fi adventure like this but also ramps up the expectations high in the same way that Paul Cornell did when he was announced as the original writer.
So how does the transition go? Find out after the cut.
Out of the three Stan Lee books released from Boom, Soldier Zero remains my favorites. Aliens, space fights, and symbiotes normally equate to awesome (at the very least a wonderful sense of childhood nostalgia), and adding Paul Cornell to the mix only made it more worthwhile. Of course, now that he’s leaving, the book could very well tank. Who can effectively replaced Cornell? The operative response is “no one,” but the one that actively actually works is Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning.
Without even missing a bit, DnA pick up the book at the exact second Cornell left with one of the most smooth transitions I have ever seen. The issue boasts itself as a great place to hop on for new readers, and while I might argue against that point, the issue does a good job of presenting the need to know information in an interesting fashion. The emotional connection only exists if you’ve read the previous issues, but DnA very much make themselves at home within the first issue in a way that feels appropriate to the original themes and storylines that Cornell was laying down, including a little bit of explanation as to the mystery behind the Agents who arrived earlier. When writers switch, there is often a noticable difference between the writing styles, but the nice thing here is that the transition is only really noticable to those who are more familiar with DnA’s writing. One of those elements is the inclusion of a brand new character Application Nine to antagonise Soldier Zero, a shapeshifter who uses a small cellphone-like device to take various forms as well as attack. In this DnA get to play with some of the techno-ideas they’ve used in other stories, such as the recent Iron Man/Thor, which plays on the idea of a new God for the technology-fueld world. Application Nine is obviously an element of this, in that the apps are now a shifting being moving beyond their given purpose in order to take down Soldier Zero for whatever unseen crimes he has committed.
Outside of this rather noticable shift in the underlying message of this science fiction story, Soldier Zero still generally keeps it’s level of quality steady. Javier Pina is still doing a killer job on the art, offering a great and well rounded look to the book. This issue is a little bit slower from the aftermath of the last issue, aside from Application Nine’s attack in the hospital. The issue is promising for the upcoming arc, though, as the last page offers a great cliffhanger point to leave us out at.
Soldier Zero is still in it’s earliest of issues, so there was never any real worry that a shift in the writing team might “change” the story in any way, or that a new writer might not “get” the character like Cornell did since he created it. Creative team changes are usually scary, but there is never any reason to really be scared with DnA on the book. The book still has the same feel and flow, and I’d be willing to wager that the upcoming run with DnA will only take the book to better places above and beyond.
Final Verdict: 8.3 – Buy
