Tariq had undergone a unique, experimental procedure to cure his bone cancer. The prognosis is usually not very good for anyone undergoing exploratory surgery in a science fiction comic book. Things got worse for Tariq, but not until after the bomb. Writer Geoff Johns explores a little bit more about Tariq’s life after the nuclear holocaust in Geiger #3. Artist Gary Frank manages a few moments of genuine visual poetry in an issue that travels a bit further into an appealing direction than either of the first couple of installments in the series. Geiger is starting to feel a bit entertaining in its third issue.

Hailee and Henry have run into the legendary glowing man of the wastes. He and his two-headed wolf regard them coldly. He saved their lives from the nightcrawlers of the wastes, but they’re going to have to survive a hell of a lot more if they’re going to be able to make it to safety. They’re not going to make it there without the glowing man who was once known as Tariq Geiger. The glowing man has been alone for longer than he knows. Will he be comfortable acting as a guardian to a couple of kids? 

Johns has tilted the narrative away from the twisted villainy of the royalty of his post-apocalyptic Vegas. This is a good thing. The character of Geiger IS probably the most interesting thing in the whole book so far. Johns kind of kills a brilliantly poetic premise as he is confronted by the authorities in backstory that’s revealed early in this chapter. The grizzled loner who is protecting a couple of kids he doesn’t know doesn’t seem nearly as interesting as the lone guardian of a fallout shelter. Johns is definitely marching into far less interesting territory beyond the third issue, but the character’s backstory is genuinely engaging. 

Frank hauls the darkness onto the page with a sharply moody style. The medieval knights that serve as villains seem more than a little goofy contrasted against the more traditional darkness of a mysterious loner with a long black cloak and the savage two-headed dog who is his pet. The visual of the loner and the whole Lone Wolf and Cub vibe that Johns will evidently be playing with throughout the series might seem a bit tedious, but Frank renders a powerful sense of drama to the page in the faces of Hailee and Henry.

The action hero loner is a challenging thing to finesse without seeming hopelessly trite. Tariq Geiger narrowly manages something fresh, original, and mysterious beyond the cliche of the action loner with a dark past. Having a couple of kids to look after will likely pull the narrative really far into the cliched direction that will probably end up in some pretty silly territory with the villains that Johns has carved out for the series. In light of this, it’s nice to know that there are enough panels in the first three issues to make for a really solid and enjoyable one-shot. There have been some excellent moments in the series thus far.

Grade: C