By LJ Doresseau
April 19, 2004 - 09:55
Reservations about #16 aside, PLANETARY #17 is a good example of why Planetary reads so well in collected editions and almost as well as single issues. A clever riff on Tarzan or the (white) man child raised by animals, this issue's "Opak-Re" also ties in to the overall series by revealing a likely much-demanded origin story. As a bonus - from the first time you saw him, you just really had to know that Elijah Snow was a baby daddy, and now you can find out for sure.
As usual, Ellis script is brisk and concise. There is not so much a plot as there is a tale with a rising level of suspense and anticipation.
Cassaday is a master when it comes to the overall layout out of a book and the design of individual pages. He creates a sense that the story flows, which important because that lessens the often static nature of comic scripts.
[DRECK, DULL, READABLE, VERY GOOD, EXCELLENT]