Review - The Answer #4

When reading a comic book, inevitably you'll have questions. If it's a good book, it'll have the answers to those questions. If it's an exceptional book, it'll boast the answer, or at least a character of the same name. The Answer #4 from Dark Horse Comics is that book.

The final issue is written by Dennis Hopeless, with art by Mike Norton, colors by Mark Englert and letters by Crank!.

To say that things are strange for Devin McKenzie is an understatement. In fact, she's smackdab in the middle of an insane asylum where things aren't what they seem and she's witnessed the potential death of The Answer. And now she's got a shady character known as Chip telling her stories about tentacles and the ability to open strange gateways into other dimensions. It's not quite what she signed on for when she thought she was joining a group of fellow brainiacs.

This is the fourth of four issues and Hopeless makes sure there are no loose ends left. The story is wrapped up quite nicely, even empowering Devin for future encounter with any opponent who may come her way for her unique knowledge. Things look bleak for The Answer at times, but he manages to rely on something within to come through in a pinch and help save the day for Devin. Speaking of Devin, she gets quite an interesting arc.

When the series started, she was a relatively shy librarian, content to solve seemingly unsolvable problems to the recognition of nobody in particular. By the end of the series though, she better realized her true potential and simply got tired of being a damsel in distress. No, she knew her intelligence and capitalized on it to save the day and make her future safer as well.

Norton's art continues to impress and really helps the book not feel too superhero. The dimensional rifts are full of some crazy looking characters, those who aren't content to stay locked up in another dimension. Chip looks the part of evil jerk, really hitting home the point that he's a bad guy with bad intentions. The panel layouts are pretty standard, but when the major dimension opens up the reader is blinded by the light alongside the characters.

The fourth issue ends the four issue miniseries, sadly. It was actually a very well done series that presented a hero character in The Answer who didn't become the sole focus of the series. Instead, Devin starts as a damsel in distress and then becomes a hero when it's all said and done. There's definitely potential for more exploration of the universe, but as of right now you'll have to be content with the four issues being done with.

The Answer #4 is in stores April 24.