For the most part, I LOVE the art on the mini-series. Then I look at Williams’ work on the bookends and almost fall out of my chair. Yes, it’s not Bianchi’s, or Stewart’s, or Sook’s, or Mahnke’s, or Irving’s fault, but that’s the way it is!

But I have to take a small issue with this: “It’s not really the fault of the artists who follow him on the mini-series, but Williams sets such a high standard that we can’t help but be disappointed with what follows.”

That’s not really a fair statement. (As you practically acknowledge yourself.) That’s like faulting some other really innovative inventors or artists from the Renaissance for not being Da Vinci. Williams is simply in a class of his own … but that’s not to say the others don’t (almost univerally) do a top-notch job. I’m particularly in love with Frazer Irving’s work on Klarion! Doug Mahnke rocks on Frankenstein, ditto Ryan Sook on Zatanna, and Cam Stewart cranks Guardian too. Each mini demands such a different style from the others, really. DC oughtta be embarrassed for letting most of these artists on Soldiers slip over to Marvel (some in exclusive contracts — d’oh!).

And it’s a cool, ambitious blog series you’ve got going here. I love SS0, but I’d disagree that it’s the best issue of the series. Zatanna or Guardian #4 both surpass it for me, but I do think what’s remarkable is the way Grant creates these really memorable characters in such little page time. They have to be good because when they crop up many issues later in Bulleteer, I was really eager to learn more about them.

“On a dark desert highway… I heard the mission bells, and I was thinking to myself this could be heaven or this could be hell…”