Secret Identities #2 Review

writers: Jay Faerber, Brian Joines / artist: Ilias Kyriazis / Image Comics We’re back on the Front Line with Luminary, Helot, Punchline, Gaijin, Recluse, Vesuvius, Rundown, and Crosswind. That’s right – 8 names holding it down on this, the second issue of a series. Managing such a large cast is a tall order, and it comes with some difficulty for readers trying to wrap their heads around the characters and their stories, but Faerber and Joines do about as well as possible with their choice of this many heroes. Where they excel is giving each character their own distinct voice, genuine dialogue, and clearly thoughtful backstory; the downside is the 2-3 maximum pages that can be attributed to any given character, selling them short and making for a scattered experience where readers quickly jump from Recluse and Gaijin fighting a smuggling operation, to Luminary and Punchline talking in the White House, to Helot and Vesuvius sparring back at HQ. It can feel a bit much, yet the fact you’re so interested in learning the characters more is a good sign. The early frontrunner as the game-changing character is Recluse, who is skeptical of Crosswind and blatantly distrusts him. He’s the closest thing to Rorschach, except I think he’s powered by eating people, and he seems abusive to his wife. That’s right, he was almost your favorite. Still, you can’t help but love his bluntness. When Crosswind was first invited to headquarters, Recluse was still wearing his mask, like “What? You thoug…