I’m genuinely surprised by how much I’m enjoying Javier Pulido‘s artwork in this series. Upon initially seeing the preview pages for Ninjak #3, I was cautiously optimistic that I would come to like the artist’s style as I had flashbacks of another comic that I was initially disappointed in the art style before I began to appreciate what the team were doing with the comic. I’m in a similar position now, albeit starting from a more open position, and watching Pulido play with the panels, borders and layouts on each page is a genuinely exciting feeling. Especially once you realize how the page needs to be read (which is honestly one of the only drawbacks to his creativity is that it sometimes took me a few seconds to work out how to read the page because of the layouts).

Ninjak #3 continues to evoke the series James Bond vibes as Ninjak and Agent Myna confront a kill team sent after Neville Alcott before the duo head to a mysterious mountain base. With the comic picking up exactly where the previous issue left off, Jeff Parker throws you right back into the action – which is going to be great for the trade, but because of the gap between issues, it adds to the pace of things on the page as your brain recalls what had happened in the immediate pages leading up to what you’re about to see.

Because we’re now three issues into this creative team, you’re going to know whether you want to continue with the series and its creative team or not; Ninjak #3, for me, establishes the unique aesthetic (when it comes to Valiant’s comics at any rate) and the consistent pacing of the comic places it higher on my weekly reading list than a lot of other books. Parker and Pulido have delivered another solid comic that’s sure to have people talking – I can’t wait to see what they have in store for us next issue.

You’ll see the first few pages above to get an idea of just what Pulido is capable of; at first glance the style seems like an overly simplistic one at first, but the depth of storytelling he delivers is fantastic.

Story and Art: Jeff Parker and Javier Pulido
Letters: Dave Sharpe and Javier Pulido
Story: 8.5 Art: 8.6 Overall: 8.5 Recommendation: Buy

Valiant provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

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Purchase: comiXology – Kindle – Zeus Comics – TFAW