S.W.O.R.D. #3
Manifold tries to get allies for the battle against Knull and makes a shocking discovery in S.W.O.R.D. #3, by writer Al Ewing, artists Valerio Schiti, Ray-Anthony Height, Bernard Chang, Nico Leon, colorist Marte Gracia, and letterer Ariana Maher. Ewing and company focus on Manifold, and it pays off a lot in this issue.
Leaving Lila Cheney in charge of the Logistics Division of S.W.O.R.D., Manifold walks the universe before returning to Earth and the Outback for a catch-up with some family members, checking on them as the war against Knull rages. He goes back to space to meet with Prince Djaghar of the Zn’Rx, offering him the use of some mutants in exchange for help against Knull. Djaghar refuses because Knull’s attacks cost his sister forces in their ongoing war of succession. Manifold leaves, and Djaghar is killed by one of Knull’s soldiers. Next, Manifold goes to the Alpha Flight station and discovers that Henry Peter Gyrich is working for the ORCHIS Initiative. He returns to the Peak to warn Abigail Brand, but she sends him to Krakoa to pick up the S.W.O.R.D. Agents there only to find a Knull possessed Cable has defeated them all.
Manifold is a great character to focus on. For a lot of readers, he’s not exactly well known, so for Ewing to pick him as a point of view character works very well. He’s able to give readers a great idea of exactly who he is and catches up fans of the character on who he’s become since they’ve last seen him. It works exceptionally well and with a cast as big as the one in this book, a very smart way of doing things- pick one character to focus on so readers can get a handle on who they are. Manifold is also pretty perfect for the type of story Ewing is trying to tell in this issue, jaunting through space, moving with the plot.
And what a plot it is- trying to find allies for fighting Knull, Manifold tries negotiations, but it fails. It’s a fun little sequence that also does a great job of showing readers who may not be following King In Black the stakes of the battle against Knull- the symbiote god’s reach extends across the Marvel Universe. Another interesting little wrinkle is the revelation of Gyrich’s allegiance to the ORCHIS Initiative. It’s not surprising for readers who know who he is, but it is one of the rare mentions of the Initiative. It also is a nice bit of set-up for the future, pitting Brand and S.W.O.R.D. against Gyrich and Alpha Flight.
There are a lot of artists on this book, but it’s honestly kind of hard to tell when the art shifts, which is very nice. Sometimes when there are multiple artists in a book, the transitions in style can be a bit jarring that never happens with this book, giving the art a nice continuity.
S.W.O.R.D. #3 is a really good issue. Putting the focus on Manifold is a great move by Ewing. While the story mostly deals with King In Black stuff, it still does a bit of set-up for the future by bringing Gyrich into the book and revealing him to be working with mutantkind’s greatest enemy. The art is very good, considering the number of artists who worked on it, with no jarring stylistic changes. S.W.O.R.D. #3 is yet another crossover issue done right.