THE VISITOR #6 – An Honest Review

In THE VISITOR #6, available from Valiant Entertainment on June 16th, 2021, Agent Dauber is under the mind control of Kubo-sama. Can she resist killing the Visitor or will she be sacrificed on the eve of Father’s birth?

The Details

• Written By: Paul Levitz
• Art By: MJ Kim
• Colors By: Ulises Arreola
• Letters By: Simon Bowland
• Cover Art By: Amilcar Pinna
• Cover Price: $3.99
• Release Date: June 16, 2021

Was It Good?

The art was good. The story completes the arc but with too many facepalm moments.

When you’re creating a science fiction story, the operative word is “science.” If plot points incorporate science elements from what’s known (e.g. “how do planes fly?”), the science has to be portrayed with some semblance of accuracy. Creators can go wild with the future science that doesn’t exist, but present science must be obeyed.

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Here, the present science is absolutely not obeyed, and it makes the resolution on at least two main set pieces come off as ridiculous. It’s a subtle difference but it’s the difference between smart, cool science fiction and cheesy, dumb science fiction. This is cheesy dumb science fiction that makes you roll your eyes.

On the plus side, the art is improved over the prior issue. The action is energetic. The characters emote well. And the colors pop better more than you expect in a book that’s mostly in dark corridors or outside at nighttime.

What’s It About?

[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]

we pick up in mid-confrontation between Agent Dauber and Kubo-sama from the end of the last issue. Read our THE VISITOR #5 review to get caught up.

Kubo-sama has Agent Dauber under mind control. She’s aware of what’s happening but can’t control her body. The Visitor arrives to stop Kubo-sama, who in turn forces Agent Dauber to try and shoot the Visitor down.

Agent Dauber resists with everything she’s got and does manage to resist Kubo-sama’s mind control. Before she can turn her gun on him, Kubo-sama knocks her out and turns his mind control on the Visitor to render her unconscious.

Later, Agent Dauber and the Visitor wake up tied to a rocket and held at gunpoint by Kubo-sama. His plan is to kill both hostages and blame the deaths on the Visitor.

At this point, we get off the rails with the “science” part of science fiction. The Visitor uses his electrical powers to blow everyone back and dree himself and Agent Dauber. No matter how you slice it, three humans standing at the base of a rocket when it launches would be dead. Not stunned. Not injured. Ash and cinders.

The security teams arrive to find the Visitor and Agent Dauber mildly injured. Kubo-sama beats a hasty retreat by claiming he needs to get to an airport asap in a helicopter. Agent Dauber and the Visitor commandeer an Apache attack helicopter to chase Kubo-sama down.

Science silliness occurs again when the Apache helicopter needs to catch up to Kubo-sama’s helicopter. The Visitor concludes that his Apache has electrical parts so jolting it with electricity will make it go faster. No combustion engine vehicle runs that way, and suddenly pouring megavolts into the Apache would only short out its systems.

Well, catch up they do, and the Visitor shoots down Kubo-sama’s helicopter with multiple missiles. The helicopter crashes in the city below, and the Visitor leaps down to zap Kubo-sama and puts an end to his evil plans. Science silliness number three — a helicopter hit with multiple Apache missiles would be in tiny pieces by the time it hits the ground. Nobody would walk away from that alive, much less strong enough to lift a weapon and shoot back. It makes for great drama, but it’s ludicrous.

We conclude the issue (and the arc) with multiple epilogues to hint at what could happen next.

How Does It End?

The Father AI project is not completely dead. The Visitor decides to make a life choice. Mr. Silk plans his next move.

Final Thoughts

THE VISITOR #6 has great, action-packed art, and it wraps up the current arc in a neat little bow. However, the journey from A to B is filled with silly action and non-science science-fiction that borders on insulting its audience.

Score: 6/10