REVIEW CORNER: Invictus: Outrage! # 2

From https://www.firstcomicsnews.com/review-corner-invictus-outrage-2
by Francis Garbut

Invictus: Outrage! # 2 (2023)
“Brought To You By Midnight Blue”
Writer: Jim Burrows
Artist: Gilbert Monsanto
Letterer: Francisco Zamora
“From The Tale of Red Halo”
Writers: Jim Burrows & Earl Wajenberg
Artist: Mel Ford
Letterer: Eric N. Bennett
“The Night Lili”
Writer: Jim Burrows
Artist: Dean Juliette
Colorist: Danilo Leao
Letterer: Eric N. Bennett
Rating:
I’ll examine “Invictus: Outrage # 2” from G-Man Comics. The second issue in this series features three stories that give the readers more variety but continues to show that the G-Man Universe is a tour de force in the ever-growing world of comic books so let’s look at the three stories within this issue.
“Brought to you by Midnight Blue”
Outrage and Team Invictus get a new villain in Midnight Blue, a powerful media mogul who uses her power and influence to rid herself of anyone who gets in her way. Right away, Midnight Blue feels like a mixture of Lex Luthor meets Talia al Ghul which I feel suits the characters as she looks to be a major threat to Team Invictus. Before I forget, I would love to see more of Lionheart as I feel that he’s a hero that is deserving of his own series (Please make it happen, R.O.); Gilbert Monsanto’s breakdowns are still amazing, but he can definitely benefit by being paired with an inker. I mean, imagine the wonders that will come out of it and I once again feel very strongly that Monsanto should work more on his inking so it won’t come off like a hazardous version of Neal Adams.
“From The Tale of Red Halo”
The second feature finds Lileilah and the Watchers being bound on a Neither Realm. Jim Burrows and Earl Wajenberg make the most of this story since they had two pages to work it but it’s a strong story regardless. Mel Ford is without a doubt the MVP with his artwork bringing the whole Mike Mignola meets Andy Khun vibe to it and because of that, It would be amazing to see more of Mr. Ford’s work.
“The Night Lili”
This story introduces us to True Blue and Richard The Blue Knight as they face off against The Night Lili, a demon who’s been on a binge of destruction and killing but both T.B. and Richard have their work cut out for them when they come face-to-face with her. T.B. and Richard are two perfect examples of why the G-Man Universe has such powerful heroes that fit any genre whether it’s old-fashioned superheroes or noir. T.B. and Richard don’t come across as a Batman or Batgirl ripoff due to the third addition to this issue having more of a supernatural detective feel to it which thanks to Jim Burrows’ scripting will definitely get you invested in this story but just like Outrage and Lionheart, T.B. and Richard are also characters that all comic book fans should look out for.
I really enjoyed reading the stories presented here as Jim Burrows has a knack for writing such strong characters due to the sharp pacing and character development he adds to his scripts but make no mistakes, The G-Man Universe will take over the comics industry no matter what and I think that the world will be better because of that. And who knows, one of these days Jim Burrows could very well be this generation’s Roy Thomas!
Well, that’s it for me this week. Thanks for sticking around and I will see you all next time,