MEGA MAN #35 by Ian Flynn and Tyson Hesse
Mega Man is a character I had some familiarity with as a child. I played some of the early video games, but that was about it when it came to my exposure to the franchise. I'm aware that in the time following there have been a myriad of games, comics, and animated incarnations of a character that I once knew as two dimensional. Casting all notions aside, I jumped into this copy I received for review and hope that I can do it some justice. (I actually did read the previous issue.)
This issue sees Mega Man and his cohorts finally infiltrate the tomb of Ra Moon in search of Dr. Wily. Action is foregone in this issue and the creative team takes the time to focus on character. Hesse's manga-esque, expressive art style is a great complement to Flynn's emotive storytelling. The running theme seems to be robots dealing with having human emotions. Mega Man and Dr. Light examine what it is for humans and robots to feel fear, but I found Quake Woman's encounter with Break Man that examined forgiveness to be more compelling.
Another Mega Man X backup is included. It's worth a read, although I didn't get into it as much as the main story. If you're keeping up with Mega Man comics, reading it should be considered mandatory because it's leading to the big "Dawn of X" time-spanning crossover that begins in #37. This isn't my favorite title published by Archie, but it was suprisingly enjoyable.
Score: 8/10