Comics / Comic Reviews / DC Comics

Review: Cyborg #19

By Philip Schweier
December 6, 2017 - 15:55

Kevin Grevioux takes over writing Cyborg (at least for the time being), and I am happy about that. I’m sure the previous writer, John Semper Jr., has some credibility, but perhaps Cyborg was a just a bad fit. Perhaps I’m in the minority of those who didn’t care for his tenure on the title.

 

I’d like to say Grevioux will do better, but I’m not so sure. In this story, Cyborg is in the Sudan, where meteorites have been falling with a peculiar regularity. Not just any meteorites – these are filled with a king’s ransom in precious metals. What Cyborg discovers is a brutal warlord who has in his possession a mystic rhinoceros horn. Like the Monkey’s Paw talisman of old, it will bestow three wishes upon whomever possesses it, but with a costly touch of irony. So when Victor Stone admits to sometimes wishing he were completely human again – Poof! – he’s human.

 

One might think that it is the cliff hanger on which this issue ends, but no. Vic’s transformation is surprisingly sedate as plot developments go. It just seems the cast – including Vic himself – just aren’t weirded out enough, in my opinion.

 

My other concern is the magical implication of the rhino horn. Sure, magic exists in the DCU, but I just don’t expect it to cross paths with a character of such advanced technology. Still, Semper stuck to the techno-thrills, and look where it got him. Kudos to Grevioux for going in the completely opposite direction.

 

Rating: 7/10

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12