Writer: Jay Faerber
Artist: Mahmud A. Asrar
Company: Image Comics

Jay Faerber’s newest manifestation of the superhero team paradigm, found here in the pages of Dynamo 5, has the right to be compared to many things that have come before it in comic book history. It’s a team book of the highest fashion, fitting in with the likes of a hip Fantastic Four or Justice League of America that provides not only an abundance of thrilling action but also nails the group dynamic in a swanky and addictive fashion. So yes, Dynamo 5 can be compared to those things, can be put into the class of an excellent team book that everyone should give a shot…but for me, I equate the title to being like a really good grilled cheese sandwich.

Wah-huh?

Yes, you heard me correctly, like a really good grilled cheese sandwich. It’s possible that you now think that I’m nuts for comparing a comic book to food, and you may be right, but with every comic book you read, there comes with it the inevitable after effect of being left unsatisfied, filled just right or being so full that you can’t see straight. This second issue of Dynamo 5, not to mention the first, falls into the middle category of being just right, as it hits all the right buttons of comedy, action, team banter and sexual innuendo. In other words, this issue hits the spot.

But what’s this one about, you’re asking (or you should be asking)? Well, with the origin of the team summed up in the first issue, this second outing has the fledgling team going up against a monster called Whiptail, a being that resembles the Lizard from Marvel fame. What’s defining about this issue is that the book opens with the action already in motion, as a showdown has occurred between the team and one of their villains and the only people still standing are Scrap and Whiptail. Yes, it might be a little out of the ordinary to just start with a battle instead of setting up the story and then going from there, but it’s a device that Faerber works to his advantage and it really grabs the reader’s attention. Besides the obvious action that is called for, what stands out is that there’s also a nice amount of sleuthing involved that could have easily been pushed to the wayside. It wasn’t and it serves as not only a detour for the story so it can explore other avenues but it furthers the stories of the characters as they interact with one another. And really, while we sometimes read stories just based on the need for good action or some funny jokes, what really brings people back are good characters, and to put it bluntly, Faerber has got those in spades.

All of the characters have powers that are recognizable to anyone who’s ever read a comic book. There’s super strength, telepathy, eye blasts, shape changing and flight; all corner-stone powers for superheroes. What makes them different this go around is that the powers aren’t assigned to the people you’d necessarily associate with them. The jock doesn’t have the super strength, the goth girl Scrap does - and so on and so on. They’re just a little bit different and because they’ve only had their powers for a short period of time, all of them are bound to make mistakes which makes for great reading. One of the best scenes in the entire book is just a back and forth between Scatterbrain and Visionary as they’re staking out a building and talking about their love-lives. It’s a small scene, only a page, but it works so well at defining who these characters are and fleshes out their back stories. It also doesn’t hurt that the scene is funny to boot.

Continuing the food metaphors, Mahmud A. Asrar’s artwork is like the crispy, delicious bacon that can be added to your grilled cheese to make it unstoppable in its overall goodness. His work is like a cross between Ryan Ottley, the wackier cartoon side of Stuart Immonen and Karl Moline as it has that energized look to it, a smoothness in the way that it conveys the action that draws the reader’s eye, but at the same time melds perfectly with the story being told. It’s a sweet look for the book and the cover to this issue is probably one of my favorite covers of any book so far this year.

So, I guess what I’m saying is that Dynamo 5 is a superb grilled cheese sandwich with scrumptious bacon. Or in other words, it’s a must read book of dynamic proportions. Pick it up.