Writer: Chip Zdarsky
Artist: Butch Guice
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: August 14, 2019

This book has been one of my favorites from the very first issue…maybe even the very first page! Chip Zdarsky has really impressed me with a very serious story that still feels like a comic book. That may seem like a weird thing to say, but believe me, I am trying to give him a huge compliment here. Things really heated up last issue and we even have ourselves a mini Civil War going on between Cap and Tony and that thrown in along with an out of his mind Namor is just so crazy…and that’s really only half of what’s happening in this book!  So, was this issue any good? I’m sure it is, but you are still going to have to read my review…

The issue opens with a news broadcast that is a smart little way to refresh the readers on what has gone on while also pushing the story forward a bit. Speaking of pushing, how anout that slimeball from Roxxon?!?  Those guys see an opportunity where regular people see…you know, a global disaster!!! Of course, they show their true colors once the cameras are shut off!

We continue with Jim Hammond showing that he has had it up to here (I have my hand against my forehead) with Namor and he and Toro are ready to do something about it. I bet it involves flames of some sort. Just a guess.

It’s then off to France where Bucky has decided to keep his meeting with Namor and this is where things get really good. Zdarsky has played the Namor/Tommy Machan game so well throughout the series and after seeing that Namor wasn’t so keen with Tommy doing things without him in the driver’s seat the last issue, it is so cool to see why and when that all started. It’s also such a clever way to explain how Namor was out and about doing stuff  when he was supposed to be an amnesiac.

Pieces keep falling into place as we see how Tommy’s plan was concocted and carried out and whether or not Namor thinks it’s the right one. At this point in the series, you can’t help but feel sorry for Namor and really want to punch Tommy right in his not really there face!

While Bucky really is concerned for his friend and wants to help, Namor might be too far gone. He flips out and actually tries fighting Tommy himself and while they go back and forth (I’m sure it looks crazy to the random French guys sitting at the bar there) a guest star makes her appearance and it was an awesome surprise.  It has a cool old school callback vibe and reminded me to go back and read one of my favorite What Ifs!  It’s Vol 1 Issue #21 by the way.

The cameos continue as Cap is trying to find a cure for all the new water breathers Namor created with his bomb and we get a little more stakes for the people that were affected besides poor underwater cell coverage, though that really must suck!

We then end the issue with Namor and Tommy getting on the same page and with the help of the Serpent Crown, putting Bucky on his ass and then worse. If you were hoping that Namor would make a hero’s turn this issue, you will be very upset by the last page.

I still hold out hope for Namor, but boy do I love seeing him go bad in this issue. While you have to sort through what is him and what isn’t early on in the issue, he seems to have gone to the dark side by the end. I love this book and this issue gets things rolling again big time and I can’t wait until next issue already!

Final Thoughts:

This book is one of my favorites coming out right now and this issue ups the ante. While the mystery of what is Namor and what is Tommy was fun, the totally insane and unhinged Namor maybe even more so. Fun in a “he’s going to turn the whole planet into his own personal aquarium” kind of way that is! I don’t just recommend this, but consider it a must read!

9.4/10