Stormwatch #14

I really like Will Conrad's interior art, but his covers are so boringly generic. They're just stark static clips of an action scene without any real thought into the design.

It's a shame that Stormwatch can't seem to keep a consistent artist schedule, every time they get one I like for an issue or two, they change it again, or use fill in artists.

I can't tell what Milligan is trying to do here. After a bunch of semi-lackluster issues that were half one-shot tales, and half buildup for an arc; I thought we were FINALLY getting back into a big story; and by the end of the issue I think we are, but the arc that was to be gets cut right off. Etrigan is unleashed upon the DC Universe in the present.... because he gets away from Stormwatch after a battle so epic, their secrecy may be compromised. It seems like a weak conclusion to something that the entire issue basically spent building up as a huge battle. I mean, it IS a huge battle, but the climax fizzles out.

Luckily it seems like Milligan is FINALLY heading towards payoff for the main subplot that's been running through these one-shot tales. Harry Tanner is making his move, and it's an intriguing doozy. It seems like it's big, but we don;t know what exactly it's going to lead to, or how far along the chain he is to his endgame.

It seems clear at this point that Milligan has no idea what to do with Jack Hawksmoor. I mean, he can use him in a fight and whatever; but NOTHING ELSE. Jenny Quantam is a pivotal plot device who KNOWS that's her role, Engineer has her big slumbering plot point which is altering her character development, and then of course EVERY DAMN ISSUE dedicates time to developing Apollo and Midnighter's relationship, only to derail it in this issue. It just seems like a pretty generic move, and I think, if this isn't resolved within the arc, it's going to piss a lot of people off. But Jack Hawksmoor is just 'there' all the time to help fight. It's a shame because he's one of my favorite characters in this series.

In Conclusion: 3.5/5

Overall it just continually feels like Milligan barely knows what he wants to do with this series, throwing around plot points willy nilly with no indication of when they'll pick back up; all while the immediate plot is developed maybe 2 pages an issue if that. So many stories have come up with something cool, only to fizzle out and have the opponents set up for the future. This issue was a step in the right direction, mostly. But still could be better.