The series has been building towards the connecting of our two present timelines and while this issue isn’t quite that payoff, it’s still a huge step in that direction. So far in the story Prentiss has been the only one of our Allied soldiers to see the human/animal hybrids and so the team he’s paired with has been filled with non-believers. Well this issue changes that as we knew it. This issue we kick off in the past during Prentiss’ first stay on the island. This is the segment that really deals with the question of what makes a man and the debate continues as another side is presented. We quickly cut back to the present with Prentiss’ group as they find a dying Tigerman. They stay with him and Prentiss’ demeanor changes instantly. Instead of calling them beasts he corrects the way that the others refer to the Tigerman.
The story jumps again to the Nazi’s as they’re burning a ton of bodies of animal men and it’s really fucked up. The lead scientist tries to explain to the commander that there are generations of creatures and that they’re evolving quickly, but he doesn’t care. He just assumes that the scientist is a bleeding heart.
The remaining sets of characters we check in are the other Allied soldiers that happen upon a scouting party of Dobermen and their Nazi handler. They battle and one of the allied troops is killed. Now that everyone has stowed their disbelief of animal men, it leaves the question of “what’s next?”
The pacing of this issue is quick, but it’s a better story because of it. The reader has just enough time with each batch of characters to be rewarding and leave them wanting more. It isn’t dialogue heavy due to the action, but when the characters do interact it’s packed full of foreshadowing elements. David Walker has found his stride with this issue and hopefully that continues into the next issue which looks like it’ll be a big turning point in the series.
While you want the writing to grow and develop, usually with the art you want it to do the opposite. Sure if an artist works on a series for an extended period of time it’s great to see their style grow, but mostly you just want it to be consistent. Here Carl Sciacchitano delivers a consistent art style. Now that’s become a “bad word” of sorts in the comic industry, but for me I’ve enjoyed tuning in to each issue and feeling like I never left. Sciacchtano is consistently great which is the word you want to accompany the artwork and it might wash that bad taste out of anyone’s mouth.
This series is getting really good. It started off good, but it’s managed to grow and develop into a must read series. If you haven’t checked it out it’s definitely worth catching up on and you can do so for just four bucks as of this issue. If you like anamorphic creatures and the good guys taking the fight to Nazi’s then there is literally one series in which you’ll find both… The Army of Dr. Moreau.
Score: 5/5
Writer: David Walker Artist: Carl Sciacchitano Publisher: MonkeyBrain Comics Price: $0.99 Release Date: 4/2/14 Format: Ongoing, Digital Only