Reviews»Comic Books»Bloodshot U.S.A. #1
Bloodshot U.S.A. #1
Kareem Ali 5

Bloodshot U.S.A. #1

 

  • The good

    Great setup for series with solid story developments. Shocking ending

  • The bad

    Ease in which everyone was infected with nanites

  • The ugly

    • Bloodshot U.S.A. #1 is the start of a new series that has Valiant’s heroes attempting to stop the destruction from a virus turning people into Bloodshots. It opens up a year ago in Project Rising Spirit’s New Mexico bunker with Agent Kozol explaining in a meeting his big plan. He tells them about the Immortal Enemy and how at the end of that battle the Geomancer Kay was able to remove Bloodshot’s nanites. And right before they were getting ready to bring Bloodshot in they observed something he considered spectacular. The nanites infected other unsuspected individuals turning them insane and the only one who could stop it was Bloodshot. This situation gave him the idea of creating a Bloodshot virus and infecting the entire population in Manhattan. Fast forward a year and Project Rising Spirit has been successful in infecting the majority of Manhattan with these nanites. Can anyone stop them at this point?

    Bloodshot U.S.A. #1

    I loved how the start of this issue laid out the foundation of Rising Spirit’s plot in such a clear manner. The “creative process” behind the plan, the supposed endgame of it, and even the skepticism of some at the meeting. This wasn’t done in a heavy-handed fashion so the story flowed very well. And that’s because enough was given to still maintain enough suspense about the rollout of the plan while immediately jumping into it after being set in motion. This momentum and engrossing storytelling continued throughout this issue.

     

    When Ray and his team of Bloodshots were initially shown I thought, “please don’t let them remain on this raft for another issue.” Thankfully it wasn’t long until they were found and picked up by Ninjak. So I was excited to see that they would be involved in the events sooner rather than later. This allowed Ninjak to update the Bloodshots about the current situation in Manhattan. I enjoyed the interaction between Ray and Ninjak, mainly when Ninjak stated it’s not just about him but all the people in Manhattan. It allowed the story to move forward while still acknowledging the guilt Ray felt from the nanites infecting others. This also allowed another exciting development to happen that I won’t spoil at all.

    Bloodshot U.S.A. #1
    The rest of this issue would cover so many things in such a smooth way that I was amazed at how much story and action was packed in just 21 pages. Looking back at it now not a single panel was wasted. There was even an update involving Agent Festival and Magic. Significant character and story developments that I assume will play a role as the series unfolds. The scenes detailing Unity’s involvement in Manhattan with the way Livewire tried to handle the nanites led to even more unexpected developments.  And the last page? Truly memorable.

     

    SUMMARY

     

    Bloodshot U.S.A. #1 is an excellent start to the series with this issue not wasting one page in setting up the premise. From the start of the issue to its last shocking page it’s an engrossing read. The initial plot to infect all of Manhattan with nanites to the way it evolved throughout the issue creates enough potential for this series to be memorable.  I know it’s just the first issue so I’m hoping this momentum carries forward into the next one. Can’t wait.

     

    Release Date: 10/26/16
    Writer: Jeff Lemire
    Artist: Doug Braithwaite
  • Rating ( 9.5 )
  • Total score 9.5

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