by Randy Lander

CABLE #97 "The Path of Most Resistance Recommended (8/10) Marvel Comics Writer: David Tischman Artist: Igor Kordey Colors: Chris Sotomayor Letters: Comicraft Editors: Matt Hicks & Mark Powers Price: $2.25 US/$3.50 CAN Had I read this a week and a half ago, I think I would have had a totally different reaction to it, although likely still a positive one. But in the wake of the World Trade Center/Pentagon attacks, Tischman's notion of Cable as a soldier for the future, travelling the globe and stopping injustices of a real-world political nature, seems particularly apropos. This is not glamorous terrorism like that of HYDRA, A.I.M. or G.I. Joe's Cobra, it's ugly and realistic, despite the use of mutant powers and futuristic freedom fighters. Igor Kordey's artwork helps to maintain that feel, with a style that looks more like that of Guy Davis than Kordey's usual painted style, and works very well. The book is at times a little difficult to follow, but this is a very promising start for Cable's new direction. One thing I have to give Tischman credit for: This is a great jumping-on point for the book. No previous knowledge of Cable's labrythine history is needed, as a few bullet points from an omniscient narrator provide the basics, and the "villains" of the piece are established well both as characters and adversaries. He also provides a compelling character in Cable, with someone who is quiet but professional, with a personality that seems a true blend of his unusual upbringing in the arts of philosophy and war. Perhaps the most intriguing thing about the issue for me was Tischman's column at the end, where he talks about Cable teaching his philosophy rather than just solving problems through the use of big guns. That's a lesson the world (and comic-book super-heroes) could sorely need, and if he can pull off the difficult task of making Cable's methods reflect that worthy aim, we could have something truly revolutionary in the book. This has more in common with Queen & Country than the X-Men at this point, and that suits me just fine. While not quite as effective as Rucka's rendition of espionage, Tischman does a pretty nice job of showing us the lonely job of a spy/soldier and a chilling job of showing us how terrorism works. The opening pages, a bomb going off on a crowded street, has real power, especially in the wake of the recent attacks in America. Kordey's artwork, combined with Tischman's narration and brief character moments, gives us a feeling of the horrific event, and it's not just used to start the book off with a bang. It establishes without a doubt who the bad guys are right away. All the more impressive, then, that Tischman doesn't simply paint them with a simple brush, instead establishing friendship, love and compassion amongst the terrorists later in the book, making them out to be monsters in deed, but people in nature. The result are effective adversaries and an almost uncomfortable look into the gray morality involved in terrorism and counter-terrorism. Igor Kordey's artwork is pretty impressive, and not at all what I was expecting. His backgrounds are incredibly lush and detailed, and his characters look like real people, complete with missing teeth, scars, receding hairlines and other flaws. There's no spandex to be found, and the only costumes are the fatigues worn by the members of the Shining Path. Even the use of Cable's powers is impressively nonstandard, as he uses a telekinetic version of the "dust in the eyes" bit in a particularly lovely bit of fight choreography. Kordey also includes subtle visual details that help to connect story points, such as the use of missing teeth to identify a boy who crosses Cable's path in two different sets of circumstances. At times, Tischman's script almost requires too much attention, as the connections between characters are small keys such as a familiar dog or the aforementioned missing teeth, and he does introduce a lot of characters here. But if you're willing to pay attention and keep up, what we have here is the beginning of a book about global espionage and fixing a broken world, and it's a use of Cable far more interesting than the Chosen One or ultimate soldier we've gotten in the past. Email Randy Lander comments about this review.