Review: Project Superpowers: Blackcross #3

Over the course of the first two issue, Blackcross has been a pretty slow burn. There have been sudden events that are action packed and even shocking, but the answers have lied just outside of reach. Then there's this issue. We start off with our first "crossover" of characters. Our fake medium, Marietta meets with our fake Bob. The two discuss the weird events in their lives, and Marietta suddenly has some answers due to the visions we glimpsed her receiving last issue. So the two easily escape the hospital where Bob has been placed after an explosion and aren't seen until the end of the issue.

Elsewhere, the police and our FBI agent discuss everything we know from the non-paranormal perspective. The cops legitimately and realistically call BS on all of the recent events and hope that this is all an elaborate prank. The dialogue here is fun, and seeing small town cops react in a realistic fashion is also nice. They aren't dumb hicks, they aren't randomly assholes, they are professionals who react to the weirdness in a true way.

Blackcross-#3We meet yet another main character, this time a random man named John who is at a large creepy house and accosted by a blonde woman from his past. After she leaves, the man walks into the large house and has a conversation with the spirits of the house. Apparently all of the weird visions thus far in the serious are from beings who have passed on but feel their knowledge and abilities deserve to be passed on before their spirits completely move on. John has been training in the East and is fully accepting of the spirit. Pain and plant tentacles then ensue. It is safe to say next issue we shall finally meet the Green Lama, a personal favorite of mine.

Marietta and Bob return at the end and suddenly they have so many more of the answers then they even had at the beginning of the issue. It is like they have been reading along. Marietta's "boyfriend" shows up, acts like a possessive misogynistic asshole, and Bob punches the guy's jaw off after fully accepting the power of Black Cross. Now fully imbued with the powers of characters of Project Superpowers, our two heroes prepare to dispose of the evidence of their murder!

As a whole I enjoyed this issue. The dialogue is still marvelous and the moody artwork continues to impress. But plot wise, part of this issue didn't work for me. It felt a little abrupt that Marietta and Bob knew so much about their potential powers. What was a slow build became a little abrupt. In the grand scheme of things I fully forgive it, but do wish that there was more to the mystery. The angle that these powered beings are actually just wanting to share their abilities with someone before passing on is pretty interesting and is a nice thread connecting them all. Also the knowledge that the burning man from the first issue is somehow connected and is a possible powered being makes me really interested.

All in all this was a good issue, not a great one. But I feel it will work well in the complete story.


Score: 3/5


Project Superpowers: Blackcross #3 Writer: Warren Ellis Artist: Colton Worley Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment Price: $3.99 Release Date: 5/13/15 Format: Mini-Series; Print/Digital