- Written by: Steve Skroce
- Art by: Steve Skroce
- Colors by: Bryan Valenza
- Letters by: VC’s Joe Sabino
- Cover art by: Steve Skroce
- Cover price: $3.99
- Release date: June 14, 2023
Clobberin’ Time #4 finds Ben Grimm forming a temporary alliance with Doctor Doom to escape the void to which they’ve both been banished and stop Psychpomp’s master plan.
Is It Good?
Clobberin’ Time #4 has fairly decent writing and a strong display of art using Steve Skroce’s trademark artistic style. However, this issue isn’t particularly great for a reason that has nothing to do with the art or the writing, it’s in how the writing and the art don’t really fit together in this issue.
When last we left Ben Grimm, he partnered with Doctor Strange to figure out where Ogdu, aka Psychopomp, came from and how he got hold of a magic ring that allows the wearer to jump through time and space. In a painfully contrived twist, visiting Ogdu before he got the ring lead to Ogdu stealing the ring from Strange, effectively allowing Psychopomp to become the villain that created this mess in the first place. At the very end of the issue, Psychopomp banished Ben Grimm to a void dimension to get him out of the way.
Now, Ben encounters Doctor Doom in the same void dimension where Doom was banished by Psychopomp after he was caught trying to steal from Doom. The common enemies form an alliance and eventually make their way out of the void dimension to the location of Psychopomp’s machine, where they find the Un-Watcher held hostage, leading to an info dump that spells out the whole plan.
At a high level, the premise is original, and Psychopomp’s plan establishes him as a universe-ending threat that should be taken seriously. Skroce’s weirdly cosmic art is interesting, and the cliffhanger is impactful. These are broad-stroke positives, but it’s in the broad strokes where this issue shines.
Where this issue flounders is in the tonal disconnect between the art and the story.
The first few issues of this series worked because Skroce’s style mixed with the absurdist humor of the story to complement each other. Skroce’s art lends itself to farce exceptionally well, so as long as each issue leaned into big bombastic fun, the writing and art work well together.
Here, as with the previous issue, the story leans into serious themes that fit within your average current-day Marvel adventure, and the art feels out of place. Except for one running gag about Doom’s cooking, this series has turned into a straight-up Marvel adventure, so when you look at the Un-Watcher getting tortured or read the incredibly dire stakes of what Psychopomp is planning, the art doesn’t match the scene. It’s like watching a circus clown read a eulogy.
About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.
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Bits and Pieces
Clobberin’ Time #4 unveils Psychopomps’ grand plan to establish him as a universe-ending threat. The plan is creative, and the general art and writing execution are good, but the style of the art doesn’t match the tone of this issue as well as it did in the previous chapters.
Weird Science Marvel Comics 