Cyborg #4
Written by David Walker
Pencils by Felipe Watanabe
Layouts by Ivan Reis
Inks by Scott Hanna and Wayne Faucher
Colors by Adriano Lucas and Pete Pantanzis
Lettered by Rob Leigh
Publisher: DC Comics
The dark times continue in David Walker’s fourth issue of Cyborg with a multiverse sized bombshell that involves Victor, Sarah, and all of S.T.A.R Labs. The issue acts like a breather for everything that’s happened to our cast thus far, and it works to a certain degree. Ivan Reis works his magic on the layouts, and the colors we’ve grown accustomed to from Adriano Lucas and Pete Pantanzis are present. With Felipe Watanabe on pencils, readers are treated to Ivan Reis level art that is more stoic and works for this more dialogue heavy issue. Readers get a clearer, more defined idea of just how exactly the Tekbreakers and Technosapiens fit into the grand scheme of things in this corner of the DCU. It’s a move that may or may not reference Grant Morrison’s Multiversity and the recent Convergence event.
The Tekbreaker Sarah is from an alternate Earth (It’s never stated exactly which Earth) where, in a Flashpoint style move Silas and his wife Elinore suffered from the accident that would create Cyborg. After trying to bring his wife from the brink of death, Silas himself turns into Cyborg and brings the Technosapiens to his world where they destroy everything he held dear. There are different and similar parallels to various stories for most of the issue with the main cast. Tekbreaker Sarah is cold and calculating while Earth-1 Sarah hides from potential feelings for Victor when talking to herself. Silas runs from his fate because he started this entire alien invasion out of misguided love and duty to his family. Meanwhile, Victor takes a backseat for the most part and takes all of the news in stride and focuses more on what exactly what makes the Technosapiens tick because the clock is running out for Detroit and the World at large. The cyber-villains are prepping for a counterattack exclaiming they can hear Cyborg’s “song” inside S.T.A.R Labs. With some small quips from the Metal Men and Sebastian keeping citizen morale up and adding much needed comic relief, everyone has a part to play in the alien invasion to come.
The plot escalate when the Technosapiens from both inside and outside S.T.A.R go on the attack with Watanabe doing his best to give readers some stylized action shots with heavy inks on both Cyborg and Tekbreaker Sarah. You can really tell the panels that Ivan Reis had a hand in through his distinct style. The usual color scheme is all there even if the pencils have some consistency issues. Victor practically illuminates the page as a beacon of whites, blues, and greys when throwing himself into battle with his white noise cannons. The Metal Men aren’t as bright and colorful because they aren’t in full force like in issue 3, but they act as dashes of color when we catch up with them.
The issue ends with a final page that halts the action with the appearance of a new threat and follows the old saying “things will get worse before they get better.” In this case, Cyborg, the Metal Men, and the Tekbreakers are in for a sure to be worthwhile battle in the following issues of David Walker’s inaugural run on Cyborg.
