I have to admit that I haven't been following the modern-day adventures of the Freedom Fighters. The last time I paid attention to the team, they were still the surviving super-team from Earth-X, where the Nazis won World War II. (No doubt the last Crisis did away with all that.)The team has obviously been updated by recent mini-series adventures, but I missed those. But writers Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray are pretty dependable - I enjoy their work on Jonah Hex and I loved their version of Power Girl.
But for me, this issue is a stumble. It's not bad, it just seems... busy. We're introduced to the team as different members tackle different disturbing menaces. Black Condor and Firebrand tackle some stereotypical super-powered racists, the Human Bomb tackles an asteroid threatening the Earth, and Phantom Lady and The Ray visit a small town that's been taken over by a particularly disgusting alien blob. Their leader, Uncle Sam, just delivers a lecture.
Since I'm not that familiar with the characters, it would have been nice to have seen some kind of intro - who they are, why they work together - that sort of thing. No doubt future issues will help fill in the gaps, but this one left me mostly wondering what was going on.
I like the artwork by Travis Moore and Trevor Scott - a few of the panels are a bit crowded, but the layouts are strong, the figures dynamic and I really like their version of Phantom Lady, who's sexy without being dressed in a porno costume.
I think, like most group hero books, this title has a lot of potential - but this issue didn't get it off to a great start.
Grade: B-
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