Round Robin Review: Quantum and Woody Must Die #2

A light week for Valiant this week with only one new issue being released. Here’s our advanced round robin review of Quantum and Woody Must Die #2!

Amy’s take

I haven’t been a big Q&W fan in the past, but I’m enjoying this new series. The plot sticks to the usual outrageous adventure that this duo is known for, but Asmus has given it more depth, creating a web of deception around the duo. In this issue, their hidden enemies and their motivations are revealed to us but our heroes remain clueless. Asmus develops the characters a little further, giving Quantum an opportunity to reflect upon himself. While Woody remains annoying, he also shows some emotional range and awareness that makes him far more palatable.

Martin’s take

I really enjoyed the first issue of Quantum and Woody Must Die #1 but this second issue just didn’t quite hit the mark for me. Part of that may be that the protagonist don’t always “feel” like themselves, though I suppose that with a story that centers on them being hypnotized, that is to be expected. There are some hilarious moments in typical Quantum and Woody fashion, and the whole notion of a villain support group fits really well with the quirkiness of this title. The standout performance is artist Steve Lieber who really brings a new perspective to the book and whose art style is perfect for this type of story.

Scott’s take

While I’ve enjoyed every issue of Quantum and Woody thus far, I’ve been fairly up-and-down on the series as a whole; the second trade, In Security, was brilliant, but the first and third, while still better than most of the comics on the stand, were a bit more uneven. For the first half of this issue (I haven’t had a chance to check out Quantum and Woody Must Die #1 yet), it appeared that this mini-series would once again fail to achieve the greatness of the second volume (I barely even cracked a smile, which is unheard of for a James Asmus comic); however, the second half might have been some of his strongest work yet. Obviously, I don’t want to ruin of the best bits, but I will say that I liked Asmus’ clever use of continuity via the idea of innocent bystanders. In addition, there’s actually a surprisingly strong moment of character development for Woody, which demonstrates that Asmus is more than just a comedic writer. Steve Lieber is also a welcome addition to the team. Although this script doesn’t really challenge him to stretch his creative muscles the way Superior Foes of Spider-Man did, he does have several strong moments, and his ability to convey facial expressions (a must for any cartoonist doing humor) is incredibly strong. I’m not sure what the rationale behind this particular mini-series was, but it does make me wish that Quantum and Woody were still an ongoing series, so mission accomplished?

Originally from ValiantCentral.com