To some people, Grant Morrison is untouchable – a master of the comics medium who can do no wrong. To others he’s not all he’s cracked up to be. Here at Grovel we’ve got a mixed attitude to his body of work: while some of it is great, there are also bits we don’t like. There’s nothing wrong with this – no-one can be a genius all the time. But we think it’s important that we at least establish that context before carrying on. We’re not just gushing Morrison acolytes, OK? But sometimes he just hits the spot.
Seven Soldiers of Victory is an ambitious project. Originally published in standard monthly comic form, the series was designed to be 30 episodes long and consist of seven four-episode mini-series, book-ended by two more issues. If ever there was a great reason why buying comics in longer-length graphic novel editions is so much more sensible, this is it, as you’ll only have to pick up four books.
The Seven Soldiers are characters from DC Comics’s archives (except for Zatanna, who appears to us to be still quite current with appearances in things like Books of Magick), brought back to life. Morrison has pulled them out of the fictional world of Gotham City and Metropolis, and dropped squarely into real-life New York.
The opening chapter is an absolute stunner and the stories that follow it aren’t half bad either. Each character’s mini series is drawn by a different artist and only four of the main characters are covered in this volume. However, their lives are as different as you could imagine, but are clearly hurtling together at a rate of knots.
The artwork is good across the board but most importantly, this is Morrison at his most coherent, heading somewhere with a free reign on the characters and a plan that’s on a steady boil but will certainly leave you clamouring for more. Bring it on.
Other titles in the Seven Soldiers of Victory series:
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