Scarlett #5 is written by Kelly Thompson and published by Image. Artwork is by Marco Ferrari, colours by Lee Loughridge and letters by Rus Wooten. Main cover art (left) is by Marco Ferrari and Lee Loughridge.
Scarlett #5 is available from today, in print and on digital platforms where all good comic books are sold. Grab your digital copy from Amazon ComiXology UK right here.
Synopsis
Everything that Scarlett, Storm Shadow, and Jinx have been planning comes to a head. And the future of the Energon Universe will change forever. The road to G.I. JOE #1 ends here!
Review
Kelly Thompson and Marco Ferrari bring us to this thrilling conclusion of Scarlett, a journey that started off with a woman simply wanting to rescue her friend after discovering that she’s been alive after being presumed missing for two years. This miniseries has been more involved with the Energon Universe than we all thought, and the conclusion is a huge game changer for what’s to come in the future as the hierarchy has totally shifted.
For the past two issues, Scarlett has been on a mission to infiltrate the Sato Trio, which has been under Mugenonami control, to find this weapon that is the “soul of the Arishikage.” With the Inochi No Ken, also known as the Sword of Life, in Storm Shadow’s hand, the only thing left is to escape. Marco Ferrari makes sure to showcase the power of this sword with its most gruesome page yet and Lee Loughridge setting the dark tones with his colours.
We’re later met in this issue by a familiar face and some adversaries that we’ve met before in the Energon Universe and find out exactly why Cobra wants their hand on this Sword of Life. It becomes clear that whoever wields it will have a lot of power in this universe and will be able to change the trajectory of a lot of things.
Kelly Thompson always felt like the right writer for this series, coming off of Black Widow and Captain Marvel, but through this entire series, it has lacked one thing. Stakes. Scarlett is a badass character and one that readers are sure to welcome back quickly, but Thompson struggles to put the character in any real danger. Not leaving any room for the readers to second guess if she’ll make it out of this mission alive or not.
Thompson does well in writing the relationship between Scarlett and Jinx and connecting this to the greater universe, but she doesn’t do enough to make readers believe that this ‘suicide mission’ was actually as dangerous as the characters made it out to be.
Verdict
Scarlett #5 leaves us off with a conclusion that greatly affects the future of the Energon Universe. Kelly Thompson still feels like the best writer for Scarlett and manages to deliver on this ending but still suffers from providing any personal stakes for the central characters, making the overall read for readers less engaging than it needs to be.
⭐⭐⭐
