This second issue of Defenders of the Earth has the newly formed team creating a secret base. Meanwhile, Ming the Merciless has the same idea, choosing the North Pole as the locale of his operations on earth.
Power Pack's Michael Higgins takes over storytelling from Stan Lee. It's like selecting a bench-warming roller blade enthusiast to replace Wayne Gretzky. There's just some mighty shoes to get filled here.
One issue I have with Higgins isn't so much his talent, but his writing style. I think he must have been from the U.K. because the Defenders of the Earth are now starting to spout little bits of slang every once in a while and it's rather odd British bits of dialogue that's being thrown about. Last issue, Stan Lee had everybody sounding like a 1980s New Yorker. Now everyone sounds like they're from London's East End. It's rather an disjointed transition.
Once again, the Phantom is grossly underused. He appears in the first act. But it's not until the third and final part of this story does he finally talk as well as spring into action. This issue is more about Mandrake and his bodyguard Lothar than anyone else. It's not so much a bad thing as poor use of all of your available characters.
I think I am starting to see some cracks in this franchise's foundation leading to why both the comic book and TV series were quickly cancelled.
Worth Consuming!
Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.
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