Originally published December 23, 2014. Updated April 13, 2018.
Zeb Larson reviews C.O.W.L. #7…
The times they are a changin. After the shocking murder of a C.O.W.L. hero, members of the organization must put aside their differences in order to find the killer…before Detective Evelyn Frost and the Chicago Police do.
After last issue’s almost light-hearted story, C.O.W.L. is back in regular form with its main plot. C.O.W.L. is suffering through the fallout from issue #5, and the city of Chicago now has costumed super-villains creating trouble. Things are about to get a lot worse for the city. Some spoilers are ahead, so read on at your own discretion.
C.O.W.L. is dealing with threats from multiple angles: Richard Daley, the manufactured threat of the supervillains, Pierce’s murder, and the ongoing problems from the strike. Stone’s enforcers are active in Chicago, though at the moment there’s a tenuous “no killing” policy. Warner is enraged when he sees how Arclight dealt with John and goes to try and “resolve” the situation. After some wrangling, the investigation of John’s death is turned over to C.O.W.L., which will put Radia, Eclipse, and Grant on the case. Warner also goes to speak with Camden Stone, who mocks Warner for his pretensions to heroism. Lastly, John’s contact in the CPD is doing her own investigation of his death, and lets loose with a bombshell about John’s past.
Warner actually comes out of this issue slightly less morally compromised than he was before. He at least recognizes that John’s death was a tragedy, and his attempt to bring Arclight to justice for what he did helps take some of the stain off Warner. Still, Warner is standing behind everything he’s done, including a tacit alliance with a mobster, and he still seems to think he can control the situation he’s created. A good man trying to rein in a monster can still do a lot of damage, and at the end of the day, his hands aren’t any cleaner if he had good intentions.
I also enjoyed Stone’s dialogue with Warner, particularly as Stone mocks the idea that C.O.W.L. will be there for a big baddie. The dialogue echoes Hollis Mason in Watchmen, who astutely noted that there wasn’t a very good reason for supervillains to wear costumes and threaten the public. Supervillains, at least the way that they are depicted here, are a manufactured threat. The real question then is whether C.O.W.L. really does serve a purpose, or if it is a vehicle for Geoffrey Warner’s ego. Is Stone’s taunt to Warner about C.O.W.L.’s purpose meant to be foreshadowing of a greater threat, or is Stone right? I hope Stone becomes a prominent character in this series.
This issue really works in terms of dramatic revelations, despite the fact that there is next to no action. There’s a fist fight and some violence, but we’re not treated to extensive action montages. Nor does anything happen that really advances the plot; this is just an issue in which the characters all learn a few different things that will set this next story arc in motion. That’s a good thing, because Siegel and Higgins know how to advance this story without rushing things along or relying on superheroic fistfights.
Zeb Larson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Z2vq4CudKRk&list=PL18yMRIfoszFJHnpNzqHh6gswQ0Srpi5E
