Armorclads #4 Review: The Battle for Xeru

 

Armorclads #4 Cover B by Jeremy Roberts

Armorclads #4, written by J. J. O'Connor and Brian Buccellato, opens with Governor Dohman explaining to Peris the purpose of the fabled godsuits. This seems a little premature, as the governor only seems to have found part of one. But hey, a guy's gotta dream, right?

Kidnapped Ironclad Peris points out the obvious: that peace achieved by the threat of deploying a superweapon is really tyranny.

What's less clear is how people who have been genetically engineered by the Alphans could somehow possess the unique genetics Dohman has spent his life searching for. Whatever the reason, in Peris he believes he has found someone who could wield such an overwhelmingly powerful weapon.

While he promises Peris a partnership, is a man who dreams of gaining absolute power really someone with whom one can partner? Personally, I doubt Lela would think so. But then, she's arrived with her army of Ironclads to rescue Peris. She hasn't met Governor Dohman yet.

Oh, and in case I haven't mentioned it yet, they've arrived on a dark and stormy night, one richly colored by Hi-Fi.

While Peris once served as the Ironclads' leader, Lela has grown into that position. Lela and Cole, penciled by Miguel Sepulveda and inked by Raul Fernandez, clearly are working in harmony.

She's learned how to motivate her people, and channel their abilities, as these scenes--lettered by Valiant stalwart Dave Sharpe--ably illustrate.

 

What she wasn't expecting was for another force to enter the fray.

We haven't learned much about the Legionnaires yet. The Ironclads view them as a group of mercenaries who have somehow found a way to control the giant bugs. We caught a glimpse of them watching the Ironclads battling the bugs in the last issue. 

Now, they choose to attack the city as well.

You've got Lela's Ironclads, the Legionnaires, Governor Dohman's forces, and the Alphan soldiers aboard an arriving spaceship all itching to launch into each other. It'll take a cool head to limit oneself to the scheduled objectives, and not get caught up in the frenzy of battle.

 

While clearly influenced by movie franchises like Starship Troopers and Avatar, Armorclads stands on its own. Armorclads #4 showcases more of this complex universe filled with interesting characters, powerful factions, and more story elements than the series' five scheduled issues could ever exhaust. Answer the call, Valiant readers. Buy up every available copy of Armorclads #4, and demand that Valiant publish many more issues of this fantastic series.

If nobody quits on Armorclads, everybody wins!

Dragon Dave