Written by: Kyle Higgins
Art by: Rod Reis and VC’s Clayton Cowles
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: December 5, 2018

I am a big Kyle Higgins fan and also a Winter Soldier fan so this book is right up my alley. When it was announced, it immediately was on my pull list and I couldn’t wait to read it. So, now that I have, I am excited to continue? Let’s find out…

The issue opens with some bad shit going down…last second details of a planned robbery that, fortunately, won’t happen, at least not in the way it’s being laid down here. Why? Because Bucky is on the case! Yep, it seems that Bucky has started the Winter Soldier relocation project and Arthur Hayes has drawn the golden ticket. We continue with the rest of Arthur’s crew showing up and not liking the idea of him bailing. Of course, that means a fight and of course, that means some badass Winter Soldier action.

I was thrown off a bit by this beginning, but not from the story, but instead, by the art. I was not a fan of Rod Reis’s style here and really didn’t like the lack of background details and negative space he used.

Before hitting the main story proper, Higgins gives us a quick refresher course on the Winter Soldier and then shows us our team for the book…Bucky, Tony Stark, and Sharon Carter. They fit the “second chance” theme of the story even if it felt odd to see Stark hanging out in a house garage in Shelbyville, Indiana.

After some arm repairs and more character recap, Bucky heads off to visit another relocation project who is having trouble adjusting to his new life. I will admit that I was confused first and thought this was Arthur from the beginning under a new name. It really didn’t matter much in the grand scheme of things as this scene just ends up as a firefight because the guy couldn’t keep his trap shut and someone has come for his head. With all the Hydra talk going on about this guy, I was curious as to who was doing the shooting and the cliffhanger reveal was goofy…in kind of a cool way.

I have to say this first issue was a disappointment. The overall story didn’t really pique my interest and the art and characters didn’t help things much either. I will continue with this mini because of my love of Kyle Higgins and the chuckle I got out of the cliffhanger.

Final Thoughts:

I wanted to love this first issue of Winter Soldier as I am a big fan of Kyle Higgins, but it fell flat for me. I hope things pick up next month, because the art and story just didn’t do it for me here. This book is beginning on a short leash for me.

6.0/10