Having watched Black Panther: Wakanda Forever on Disney+ Plus a few days ago, I was blown away by how well the world building was. The death of Chadwick Boseman and the on-screen death of T’Challa, was meant for fans, cast and crew to mourn both. It was cathartic but at the same time, also reopened old wounds of the passing of Boseman.

What stood out about the film other than the mourning, was how the key characters reacted. For many, their pain of loss guided their actions throughout the film. They saw how easily their enemies looked to attack once they knew T’Challa had fallen. In the debut issue of Bishop: War College, we find a hero leading a team to protect an island paradise, one whose enemies are waiting to attack as well.

As the comic opens, we find Bishop pushing his newest cadets at his War College to beyond exhaustion. It’s to the point that it causes them call it quits on one of their first day. He gets visited Dani Moonstar, the new leader of the New Mutants, who warns him  that he may be pushing them too hard. But Bishop’s fears are soon realized when the Von Strucker Twins show up on the shores of Krakoa. Bishop realizes he needs to change his teaching methods and eventually turns to Tempo for help showing a more human side for the character. But, when he is running a drill with her things go off the rails resulting in Bishop to disappear to an unknown location. By the issue’s end Bishop is in an unknown world and his cadets rendered powerless just as the real threat is made clear.

Overall, Bishop: War College #1 is a fun debut issue which potentially reinvigorates the franchise and character of Bishop. The story by J. Holtman is exciting. The art by the creative team is beautiful. Altogether, it’s a story that fans will more than enjoy.

Story: J. Holtham Art: Sean Damien Hill
Ink: Victor Nava, Roberto Poggi Color: Espen Grundetjern Letterer: Travis Lanham
Story: 9.0 Art: 9.0 Overall: 9.0 Recommendation: Buy

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: Zeus Comics – comiXology/Kindle

Lucas Bishop has been a character I’ve always felt was rather intriguing. His depiction over the years has been mixed but the idea of some attempting to prevent their horrific past is a quandary with a lot of potential. The fact it’s presented in a “police” framing makes it all the more intriguing, even though that aspect is danced around. Bishop: War College #1 opens up with that potential as Bishop is tasked with training young mutants as Krakoa’s Captain Commander. The country’s defense is on his shoulders as he continues his mission.

Written by J. Holtham, Bishop: War College #1 kicks off with Bishop being the angry, drill instructor, we’ve seen far too many times. Running mutants through war games, he’s attempting to prepare a group for the threats to come and at the same time rubbing quite a few people the wrong way. And that’s where Holtham’s writing gets interesting.

Bishop: War College #1 starts off with a lot of potential recognizing the conflict with Bishop. He’s a cop sent to the past to prevent a holocaust in the future and condemning an individual who may or may not commit a crime in the future. At the same time, he’s in the present and must build a life. We’ve seen the character go to extremes with these things but here it’s presented as a conflict within the man. And that’s the most interesting aspect. We see him attempt to balance his life while also haunted by what may come. And all of that rubs people the wrong way for various reasons.

But, the story takes a swerve as a threat presents itself sending the series in a different direction by the end of the issue. That direction could be interesting but is far from Bishop training a new generation of mutants to defend Krakoa. What’s revealed needs a bit of explanation as well as it feels like it drops Krakoa’s defenses a bit too easily, especially with what has been presented in the past. The fact no one has an idea some of these events are occurring is rather odd.

The art by Sean Damien Hill is good. There’s solid emotion throughout the issue and you can see the anger in Bishop and tiredness and frustration in others. The facial expressions and body language nails all of that really well. Hill is joined by Victor Nava and Roberto Poggi on ink, Espen Grundetjern on color, and Travis Lanham on lettering. Lanham’s lettering stands out as it really emphasizes the drill instructor aspect of Bishop the comic is going for. You can hear “again” being yelled over an over. While the art overall is good, there’s some panels and characters fall a little short, an example being when the issue’s villains are revealed.

Though the ending of the issue takes it in a different direction, Bishop: War College #1 is an intriguing start that lays the groundwork for an exploration of Bishop’s mission and drive. We’ll see if it continues this direction and dives in, as expected, in a “Scrooge” sort of story, but here’s hoping.

Story: J. Holtham Art: Sean Damien Hill
Ink: Victor Nava, Roberto Poggi Color: Espen Grundetjern Letterer: Travis Lanham
Story: 7.0 Art: 7.0 Overall: 7.0 Recommendation: Read

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Purchase: Zeus Comics – comiXology/Kindle