RESURGENCE #2, by Valiant Comics on 10/23/24, finds the world getting used to the idea of being immortal, but when access to the life-giving portals is “restricted,” chaos spreads.
Credits:
- Writer: Fred Van Lente, A.J. Ampadu
- Artist: Guillermo Fajardo, Julio Azamor
- Colorist: Lautaro Ftuli, Ludwig Olimba
- Letterer: Ezequiel Inverni
- Cover Artist: Nico Di Mattia (cover A)
- Publisher: Valiant Entertainment
- Release Date: October 23, 2024
- Comic Rating: Teen
- Cover Price: $4.99
- Page Count: 36
- Format: Single Issue
Covers:
Analysis of RESURGENCE #2:
First Impressions:
The more this story progresses, the more difficult it gets to get invested in it because the central premise – a world where nobody dies – isn’t presented as a bad thing. Writers Fred Van Lente and A.J. Ampadu do a good enough job painting the main villain, Dr. Silk, as a man up to no good, but the plot doesn’t go far enough to say why his plan is bad for everyone. It’s like inventing the cure for cancer, but it was invented and controlled by an oppressive dictator. Sure, the dictator is bad, but he has the cure for cancer, so where do we go from here?
Plot Analysis:
When last we left the collected heroes of the Valiant Universe in Resurgence #1, Dr. Silk’s plans to institute immortality across the globe have upset the natural order between life and death and randomly opened portals across the globe to the Faraway. People can’t die. However, something sinister lies at the heart of Silk’s plan, and the Valiants are going to get to the bottom of it.
In Resurgence #2, the heroes and villains consolidate their forces into teams that are either for or against Dr. Silk. The Immortal Warrior reluctantly joins Silk’s psiots while Rai, Quantum, and Woody team up with the GATE. Meanwhile, Dr. Silk sends Flamingo out to perform a concert for his followers, Weavers, to get them “fired” up.
Herein lies the struggle with this event. All anyone can agree on is whether they side with Dr. Silk or not, but it’s not clear why anyone would be against Dr. Silk’s plan to bring immortality to the world. At best, the anti-Silk crowd fears Silk will have too much influence over the entire world, which is fair, but is that enough?
Meanwhile, we get a deeper look at how immortality affects everyday folks. The boy who survived his bicycle accident in the last issue leaves town with his family for an extended vacation. His father, a doctor, doesn’t mind leaving work since there are few patients left to tend. The family stops their vehicle when they see a car accident ahead. One of the injured is a classmate of the boy, so he offers to use his bike to get the girl to the nearby sinkhole for healing since a traffic jam is preventing the cars from moving. Unfortunately, the boy’s brave act is stopped by violence just short of the sinkhole.
Getting the everyday person’s perspective is a positive because we can see how daily life is rapidly changing when nobody can die. Hospitals go empty, financial systems reliant on pharmaceutical companies spiral, and any law agency or government system that relies on force or military becomes useless. Give credit to Van Lente and Ampadu for depicting the bigger-picture consequences of Silk’s plan.
The issue concludes with Faith captured by Silk’s psiot team, Baron Samedi and Darque having an unpleasant chat, Tama encountering an uncomfortably familiar face in the Faraway, and Rai picking the opposite side of the conflict than Bloodshot.
Overall, Resurgence #2 is an odd entry in the crossover event. Fred Van Lente and A.J. Ampadu do a great job of creating individual scenes of conflict and showing how immortality impacts the world, but the villain’s plan isn’t shown to be all that bad in the broader context, so the foundation of the conflict isn’t concrete.
Artwork and Presentation:
Guillermo Fajardo and Julio Azamor must have put in overtime on this issue because there are a lot, and I mean a LOT, of scenes to get through. Van Lente and Ampadu ensure nearly every Valiant character gets a moment or two, so the artists should be commended for delivering a comic that looks great, even if it contains enough content for two issues.
Art Samples:
Final Thoughts:
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RESURGENCE #2 depicts a world in chaos, where nobody can die, and all systems of power – from medicine to financial – become useless. Fred Van Lente and A.J. Ampadu give you more than your money’s worth with a comic stuffed to the gills with enough story to cover every Valiant character, and the art team bears the weight with ease. That said, the main downside is the lack of clarity surrounding what everyone is fighting for.
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