Publisher: Image Comics

Story By: Greg Rucka

Art By: Michael Lark

Release Date: 22nd October 2014

Now a couple of months ago, I commented that Lazarus was nearly ready to hit the big leagues. This month, it does it in style.

Funnily enough, I’m going to pick up on what I don’t like first. It’s slightly contrived in places. I simply don’t believe that our wonderful, perfect killing machine Forever wouldn’t know how to put on a dress. Not walk in a ladylike fashion? Fine. But simply be physically incapable of wearing a gown? No. But, that being said, it’s very funny, and almost childlike in its sweetness – so it’s forgivably characterful.

At the other end, the pay-off at the end of the issue is massively predictable – and it doesn’t matter a jot, because you’re waiting for it all issue (indeed, have been since the end of issue #10). And I won’t lie, it certainly brought a wry smile to my face.

So what’s actually going on in this issue? Well, we have a Conclave: a meeting of all of the great families that rule the world in Rucka’s dystopia. This allows him to establish bits of the world that he’s been either hinting at in previous issues or developing the back stories for in the letters pages, alternate histories and pseudo-adverts that fill in the the end pages. It’s really satisfying to finally get a more complete sense of this world, and definitely gives us more sympathy – or at least engagement – not just with Forever but the other members of the Carlyle family.

It would be easy to gloss over Lark’s art as it’s so consistently good, but that would be a terrible disservice. In particular, in the excellent sparring sequence between the various Lazari (each family’s unkillable killing machine) is vibrant and, somehow, almost innocent – a brilliant counterpoint to the menace of their purpose. And it’s this vein of innocence that writer and artist together manage to have running through the series that allows us to empathise with and even pity Forever and her kind.

The letters page is always a treat, Rucka being passionately engaged with his fans and it enabling him to talk about where the series is going. The fact that he uses it, this issue, to allow himself to be “caught out” on something is a particularly deft touch.

The series, then, is going from strength to strength – and at this rate, is going to become unmissable.

Rating: 4/5

The Writer of this piece was: Sam Graven

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