A house divided. Such is the status of Chicago’s Organized Worker’s League in Kyle Higgins and Alec Siegel’s “C.O.W.L.” #4.
WRITTEN BY: Kyle Higgins
ART BY: Alec Siegel
PUBLISHER: Image Comics
PRICE: $2.99
RELEASE: August 27, 2014
Reviewed by Nick Brehmer
The agents are on strike, as was foreshadowed in the previous issue, and the city’s people stand behind them. But as the cords of C.O.W.L continue to fray, personal motives are beginning to overshadow the goals of the collective.
Scandals are being brought to light, but rectification is delayed due to political involvement. Tom Hayden’s (aka. Archlight) lechery is getting out of hand and Reginald Davis (aka. Blaze), C.O.W.L’s deputy chief, has had enough. Familial tension is a reoccurring theme of the “C.O.W.L” series and Blaze, the central character of issue #4, has doubts spurred on by his wife regarding Geoffrey Warner’s legitimacy as chief.
Warner himself is confronted by the discoveries of detective John Pierce that could topple the political pyramid of Chicago, something Warner deems too dangerous at the present time.
Meanwhile, Kathryn Mitchell (aka. Radia) and Karl Samoski (aka. Eclipse) have taken justice into their own hands despite the strike. The irony of Radia’s “we stand together” comment is not lost. Camden Stone remains at large as the two heroes track him down after the near murder of Eclipse’s partner a few issues previous. I dig how the writers give Radia most if not all the epic takedowns.
As with each issue, the back matter of the book is full of hints. We learn in the opening of issue #4 that Blaze is the guardian of his brother’s son. His bother, Elliot Davis was once a member of C.O.W.L only to eventually become the leader of the now-taken-care-of Chicago Six. Needless to say, more familial tension is on the way.
Higgins does well in crafting an almost boardroom-like atmosphere with much of the dialogue. They don’t rely on action for tension, but when the shit does hit the fan, it’s all the more appreciated. The build-up is happening for some serious conflict in upcoming issues, albeit slowly. The sort-of perspective shift of each character from issue to issue allows the writers to explore themes is different ways. Issue #4 explores the concepts of action vs. inaction and patience vs. impatience from the moral side provided by the plot lines of Blaze, Radia, and Eclipse. It’s my prediction that as readers of this series turn into fans, allegiances to certain characters will be made only to be broken