The masterminds behind the Psiot Security and Education Program are uncovered in Livewire #7! Can Livewire save Phoebe and avoid being captured? Plus: Phoebe’s backstory is revealed!

You know that feeling you get in your gut when something isn’t quite right? It’s like when you know you’ve forgotten something. You leave the house to take the dog for a walk, but can’t quite place it. You pull up to the dog park and the pooch is being unusually quiet? It’s only then you realize that something isn’t quite right (I don’t have a dog, by the way).

That’s the feeling I got when reading Valiant’s Livewire #7 written by Vita Ayala and featuring Kano‘s artistic talents.

And speaking of talent, Kano is a tour-de-force in this issue. There’s a brutally intense fight scene early in the comic. As the scene progresses the colors become more and more red as the anger and rage between the combatants increases. And then it stops suddenly, the fight over. There’s a flash of the anger red hue a moment later. How Kano has framed the action and facial expressions the intensity never leaves the comic. Then there are the softer yellows and colder blues of the later comic. Kano matches the color scheme to the emotional content of the story. You’re never explicitly told how to feel. You know how the characters are feeling because of the backgrounds and the panel layout before you ever have to look at the art itself.

Ayala’s pacing with Livewire #7 leaves this as one of the better issues in the series so far; we see beneath Livewire’s reputation and get to glimpse the woman who just wants to help people – despite her actions in the past, we’re being reminded that at her core, Amanda McKee is still a hero. But the characters within the Valiant Universe may not realize that just now. This series may not have had the immediate connection with me that some of Valiant’s other series have, but the deeper that Ayala dives into Livewire’s psyche, the more I am enjoying the series.

Livewire is one of the rare series Valiant has right now that has more than five issues, and Ayala is proving why a longer run with a character can pay dividends in the long run. This is an incredibly enjoyable comic on every level, and it comes highly recommended from yours truly.

Story: Vita Ayala Art: Kano
Letterer: Saida Temofonte
Story: 9.0 Art: 9.2 Overall: 9.1 Recommendation: Buy

Valiant provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review