When a distress call is picked up from the survivors of a ship that had disappeared during the war with the Covenant, Spartan Linda S058 (a super soldier) is ordered to find them and kill one of the passengers, a Doctor Chen.  Though the war is over, Doctor Chen possesses knowledge that, if it falls into Covenant hands, will be disastrous for what’s left of humanity. Not knowing if it’s a Covenant trap or not, Spartan S058 leaves on her mission accompanied only by the AI known as Athos. They arrive to find Doctor Chen has become a cult figure to most of the survivors, the Covenant is on the verge of attack, and the entire mission steeped in lies of omission.

This is a terrific sci-fi/action comic.  I loved the pacing and the organic conflict.  Since I’m not familiar with this world, it was nice to see the point of view of the Covenant and calling a Spartan a demon was pretty cool and made me smile.  It was also fun to see the AI, Athos, depicted as a musketeer which I assume is a normal part of this universe. The art was well done, and I loved the splash pages with the inserts. It allowed the reader to be in the heart of the action while developing story and character. Not a moment was wasted. I also appreciated how clear the action was presented. I’ve read other graphic novels where the action is muddied in a flurry of color and pencils, and this was never the case here.

If you’re like me and have no prior knowledge of the Halo universe, you’ll enjoy it.  


Creative Team: Anne Toole (writer), Kieran McKeown (penciller), JL Straw (inker), Dan Jackson (colorist), Simon Bowland (letterer)
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
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