Secret Weapons: Owen's Story #0

   Valiant continues its series of "one shot" issues, each devoted to the backstory of a different member of the new incarnation of Secret Weapons.

   The focus here is on Owen's Story. He has the unique ability to make things appear out of thin air.

   Which sounds really handy, right? But there's a big problem that keeps it from being quite as convenient as you'd expect.

   This is a cleverly-told story by writer Eric Heisserer, with an interesting and amusing framing sequence.

   The art is by Raul Allen and Patricia Martin, and I like it a lot. The color palette is muted, and the layouts and character designs are delightful and inventive.

   This series seems to have flown under the radar - and certainly the characters involved aren't powerhouses in the traditional comics sense, but their stories are interesting, clever and fun to read.

   Recommended!

Grade: A-

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Secret Weapons #0

   Secret Weapons was a mini-series that delivered a strong story about some young psiots (superhumans) who had unusual powers - but managed to team up and defeat a deadly opponent.

   Valiant is following up that with a series of "prequel" stories, with the origins (more or less) of the characters involved.

   This issue focuses on Nikki, a lovely teenager who is lured to Harada's institute, leaving behind her typical teenager upbringing - but what follows is anything but typical.

   Her odd powers seem minor on the face of it - but they help her save her own life, and make a difference in the lives of others.

   Writer Eric Heisserer has crafted a sharp, real-life story (well, mostly) about a not-so-typical teenager and her extraordinary life.

   The art by Adam Pollina with color art by David Baron is wonderful - crafting a life story with skill and lovely depictions of characters and environments.

   This is a striking "done in one" story that tells a terrific story on its own - but it does work better if you've read the original series.

Grade: A

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Secret Weapons #4 (of 4)

    Most comics take a “bigger is better” approach to the idea of team comics, but Secret Weapons, thankfully, is taking a different tact.

   It features a group of young people with powers who join together as a team because they can’t hope to survive alone. 

   Their powers are - well, let’s say they’re different. 

   A girl who can talk to birds. A guy who can turn to unbreakable stone. A guy who can apparently work magic - but he can’t control it. A woman who controls electronics.

   Together they must face a powerhouse who has taken out much more experienced heroes - and seeing how they do it, and what they learn about themselves along the way, is very entertaining.

   It’s a comic that’s different from the norm, but there’s nothing wrong with that. 

   Hopefully this isn’t the last we’ll see of the Secret Weapons (and the issue promises more soon).

Grade: A-

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Secret Weapons #2

   You have to give credit when a comic tries something different - and Secret Weapons is definitely unusual.

   It's avoiding most of the usual "team comic" tropes and taking a different approach.

   So we have a team that doesn't wear costumes, has odd powers and doesn't really seem to be driven to fight the bad guys.

   Oh, there's an action scene in this issue, but it's the team defending itself from an attack by a mysterious and deadly foe.

  And quite a bit of the issue is given over to a discussion as the team sits around the dinner table!

   The art by Raul Allen and Patricia Martin is very good, with strong layouts and excellent environment designs. The characters are well defined, and even though they're not wearing distinctive costumes.

   The only problem is that the issue is too laid back (aside from that action scene) - it's difficult to sort out where it's going.

   The story is starting to build, but requires the reader to be very patient as it sorts itself out. It shows a lot of promise, but it's getting there slowly.

Grade: B

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Secret Weapons #1

   One of the things I always enjoyed about the classic Legion of Super-heroes lineup was that it combined several heroes whose powers were - well, not exactly impressive.

   That concept is back in Valiant's Secret Weapons.

   It brings together a small group of psiots who were "developed" by the evil Harada - and mostly rejected from consideration as a weapon.

   That's because their powers are a bit... odd.

   But that doesn't save them from a deadly menace - an evil plot that involves gathering psiots and stealing both their powers and their lives.

   So the individuals involved are going to have to team up fast - and even then, can they survive a relentless, murderous monster?

   Luckily for them, even though they don't know it - they have a secret weapon.

   So it's an interesting start to the new series - I'm curious to see where it goes from here.

Grade: A-

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