Terminal Hero #2

by Peter Milligan, Piotr Kowalski and Kelly Fitzpatrick

In the opening chapter of this new series from Dynamite Entertainment, Peter Milligan and Piotr Kowalski took what could have been a pretty predictable setup, and added in a few interesting threads that lead to a pretty engaging start. Now, Terminal Hero looks to deliver its readers a story about a man who suddenly had powers he never wanted. With its second chapter, Milligan and Kowalski find some great areas to explore, though the issue does feel slightly overcrowded.

As with the first issue of the series, readers open to find another single page sequence relating to the incident with Dr. Quigley before cutting back to the story where it left off last time. Rory has made a terrible mistake and it takes no time at all for some suits to show up and use it against him to do their bidding. Despite readers finding most of their superheroes working with a given nation to help its people, it is not hard to believe that some countries might come to this arrangement on less amicable terms. Milligan shows the audience in a few instances in this series so far the ways in which this tale stands apart from another about an unlikely hero.

British Intelligence have enough on Rory to have him in their pocket. Agents Davenport and Campbell enlist him as their operative capable of carrying out some blacklist missions. Rory remarks on how he is able to be inside the minds of these people he is sent after, and over two interactions readers glimpse a bit about the effects this may have. Milligan, there again puts in an interesting concept for readers to consider. Each time that Rory is assigned a mission to interact with individuals in some way, he absorbs their thoughts, feelings and personal history. It is a very interesting area to explore and another great thread established early in the series.

Piotr Kowalski continues to do some great work with this issue. The story has a pretty fast moving storyline and his layouts and paneling match the pace very well. Additionally, Piotr is great at depicting emotion on the faces of his characters. Whether it is anger, sadness, or pain, the strong emotions that are felt by different individuals in the issue are all so well rendered. Colorist Kelly Fitzpatrick does a solid job with the coloring on the book, as well. At times the saturation seems a bit strong, but it doesn’t distract from the events or pacing much.

In the second issue, Milligan includes a number of plot points that feel as though readers are crashing through the story. In one issue, Milligan moves through a number of phases that Rory faces with his powers and how they are applied. Readers experience some pieces of complications that arise with the powers and are introduced to what feels as though it could be a major aspect of story. Instead, it is resolved in a matter of pages. Before the end, an new direction is established. Milligan certainly has a number of good ideas, but the speed at which the book moves makes them hard to really appreciate. Readers are likely to be interested to see how the ending of Terminal Hero #2 will play out. Hopefully, though, Milligan takes a bit more time with his ideas.