Red Spike #1 – Review

By: Michael Benaroya & Jeff Cahn (creators), Cahn (writer), Salvador Navarro (art), Ifansyah Noor (colors), Josh Aitken (letters) & Dave Elliott (editor)

The Story: Two soldiers are turned into modern day “super soldier”, but nefarious interests may be behind the project.

Review: I’m dispensing with our normal “what’s good/what’s not so good” for this review just because I don’t have a lot to say about the comic.

The story is pretty straightforward: In the near future two soldiers are leveled-up via a process that stimulates their adrenal system in a controllable fashion.  Everyone knows that adrenalin can give a person some super abilities, but that it is a short-lived effect.  So, what if a soldier could “activate” the adrenalin in just their legs when they wanted to jump really high or their arms when they wanted to knock down a locked door.  I’ll be honest that I (personally) had a bit of trouble with this concept.  In my day-job, I work with emerging medical technologies and the fact that I couldn’t conceive any way to really do what the comic was suggesting gave me some trouble.  Sometimes less is more in these situations: Don’t tell how the super-soldier serum works because folks will pick at your science. Just say “scientists” gave these dudes some super soldier serum and get on with the story.

From there we see the soldiers out on their test run and taking down some bad guys.  They have a kinda buddy vibe as they’re jabbering to each other during the mission (that actually seemed really out of place for elite operators).  One of the soldiers is a little less under control than the other.   The ominous figures behind the whole Red Spike Project are both pleased that the soldiers are so badass and a little concerned about the control they have over the guys.