Writer: Matthew Rosenberg
Art: Stephen Segovia and Tom Derenick
Colors: Elmer Santos
Letters: Ferran Delgado
Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $3.99
Release Date: April 11th, 2023
There are secrets, intrigue and double-dealings galore in WildC.A.T.s #6, as Grifter is on the hunt for the people who set him up and “killed” him, while Zealot and Fairchild are sent on a mission by Halo Corporation that may also be setup to take them out. Halo Corporation’s getting a lot of attention as Clark Kent, ace reporter for the Daily Planet, is investigating them for a Daily Planet story. Another DC character lurks in the shadows also, suspicious of Halo Corporation and determined to figure out their operations.
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The Story
There is so much going on in WildC.A.T.s #6, you may need to give it a second or third read to fully grasp everything that’s going on. I appreciated Clark Kent’s appearance in this issue, pelting Halo Corporation CEO Jack Marlowe with uncomfortable questions at the beginning of the issue, conducting a probing article on the corporation and trying to get answers on the hero Majestic, who claims he’s from Krypton. We so rarely get to see Superman in his Clark Kent identity, out in the field doing his job. It’s nice to have these scenes where he’s just doing his job and living his life with not a cape or red trunks in sight.
The most interesting sections of the book are Grifter’s hunt for the people who set him up and “disposed” of him while he was overseas on a mission. His quest takes him everywhere from basement sex dungeons to the penthouse floor of a skyscraper and brings him into conflict with Spartan. Spartan’s an odd character, a humanoid-like robot with Superman-level powers who can never be trusted. Imagine Data from “Star Trek: The Next Generation” with the power of Superman and the mercurial personality of Professor Moriarty. Grifter’s encounter with Spartan goes in a wonderfully surprising direction. Another subplot involving Zealot and Fairchild going on a mission to raid a warehouse goes in an equally surprising direction, with the characters left wondering what in the hell Halo Corporation is REALLY up to.
Even though I respect the complexity of the book (which feels more like a Tom Clancy spy novel than a superhero book), there are times when there are just too many characters popping up with little introduction. Thankfully, I’m a longtime fan of the Wildstorm books, but anyone who has just a passing familiarity with these characters is going to be so busy saying “Who is that?” and “What powers do they have?” that their head’s going to explode. I hope after this storyline cools down, we’ll get some stories that will just focus on the core WildC.A.T.s members and leave other Wildstorm characters to appearances in other DC books.
The Art
Stephen Segovia and Tom Derenick’s art on WildC.A.T.s #6 is choppy in places, emphasizing mood over details. The quiet scenes are rendered better than the action scenes. The characters in the action scenes feel posed and there isn’t a feeling of motion or impact in them.
Final Thoughts
WildC.A.T.s #6 is a good issue overall with a couple of good cameos by legendary DC characters. The art came up short with showing the impact of the action scenes though, and the book can be overwhelming at times with the number of characters involved.