Wanted #6

[elduderino]

WANTED #6
Millar
JG Jones
Grade for story and art: A
First time review, bear with me!

Well, what can we say about Millar's view of a world where villians are in control? The men in this world are so evil that we had back-stab after back-stab until half of them had murdered each other.

The issue picks up right after the twist of issue number 5. Not a lot of action can be found in this issue when compared to the rest of the series, but this is the issue where someone has to explain everything to the protagonist.

The flashbacks in this issue show a heartfelt side to one of the characters, and is the only bright, sunny, happy scene in the whole series. I was a little caught off guard by it after being desensitized to the all the glorious violence in the previous issues.

The ending is great including the last two pages. On the last two pages, some fanboys better be prepared to take their meds for uncontrollable rage. Militant fanboys may see this as a jab at them personally, but fanboys like me will find it funny and so true in some ways.

In the end, Millar & Jones get an A for the issue and an A for the whole series. I would also like to say thank you to Millar for deciding to not make a sequel to this incredible series. The series stands just fine on its own.

[aceatkins]

It wasn't at all what I expected, and I kind of loved that.

Some readers have criticized this series for being essentially one big gimmick--basically, how nasty can Millar get? How disgustingly violent an image can JG Jones draw? How many times can Millar write "fuck"? How many kinky sex jokes can he get in? How many villains can he parody without breaking trademark?

There's some truth to that, but as this issue points out there's a story under all of the flashy trappings. Granted, most of it is totally obscured in issues 2 through 5, which are pretty much exactly what's written above. But they were still entertaining as hell.

This issue has a heart. A rather warped one, but a heart. I liked it. I'm very pleased with this mini-series. I absolutely hated the ending to Chosen (what a copout), but this one I dug.

Plus, best last line in a comic book EVER.

[exultant801]

bah!
this thing was great fun until the last two issues when somehow the mediocre eminem and halle berry were able to take out the entire supervillian community by themselves in about half of an issue. villains who had masterminded the destruction of all of earth's heroes were doomed to die like bitches at th hands of these pop icons. not one of them even put up a decent fight to em's magic bullets. and anyone who was actually surprised by the arrival of his living father is a sorry, sorry individual.
the big dissapoitment here is all of the potential this thing showed early on, like the tattered cape or whatever that the professor had locked up. it could have gone such wonderful places and i know mr. millar is capable, i have read Red Son and THAT is an ending.

p.s. turns out that the major reqirement to draw anything for mark millar is your ability to make characters look like his favorite celebraties.
-bleh

[Khany]

Definetly a different approach from the last 5 books, structurly the meaning of everything is answered, with an emotional grounding, but very hollow ending. Then Miller spells out the audience critiism of depravity of comsumerism, and the kind of heroes we want, because of how we rather live in a fantasy world then real life, to fill that empty whole in us. That is speaking from the point of view of the "ideological state apparatus", a satire. Though I was kinda hoping for an upbeat ending, like pro-controversy. Other opinions?

[TeresaSeligmann]

It freaked me out. It was not what I expected... which is probably a good thing, right? But it freaked me out... and made me think... and not a lot of comics can do that.

I'll be honest... I picked this up because I like Miller's Marvel work and I thought this would just be a great action movie. erm. wrong. There's precious little action in the first two and last issues. Not much action. but a lot of thought. that ending... I don't know. I was thinking about it for a whilea nd now love it in context with the series. like the end of the sex pistols... ever had the feeling you've been had? very ballsy.

It made you think.

Grade A-

[Groovie Mann]

I thought the first 2 issues were amazing but after the whole de-programming of Wesley it turned into a villain out for revenge on a worst villain. Which was fine. But when they brought back his father it seemed to turn into a crappy father-son bonding comic. Plus, the final page, seemed as if Mark Millar was trying too hard to leave a lasting impression. The art by JG Jones was great though.

Issue 6 I'd give a D
Series on a whole I'd give a C

[I am MODOK]

I really hated the first two issues of this book...then I turned off my brain and really enjoyed the hell out of it. I decided it was ok to hate the protagonists as much as the villains, and then the story just kind of clicked into place for me.

And that ending. Hoo boy. "You. Your boss." Man!

Story: B+
Art: A

[COREMARK]

I loved the first couple of issues of this mini, but the last 3 have been really dissappointing. I found this last issue completely boring, and the ending was extremely lame. I loved the art, but Millar tried way to hard on this book to shock people.

Book Grade: D-

[Strike]

I enjoyed the series, but this final issue was a terrible letdown.

What the HELL was that sentimental father-son bonding shit?! The sight of a supposedly heartless rapist and killer crying on his daddy's shoulder like a soppy girl just made me shudder with loathing. It was completely out of place and out of character for the whole series.

Good series, but a terrible final issue.

[JimShelley]

This series had a lot of potential, but something happened in the last two issues that just wasted all that potential. I really didn't like issue 5 non stop bullet fest with all those great villians just getting killed. What, the cops on that world never thought to shoot guns at those villians? They're totally defenseless against bullets? Stupid.

The last issue was just long and boring. The final page did sum up my feelings though. Mark Millar definitely got the one up on me for this one.

[arcane67]

This last issue was a total let-down. I agree that the whole father-son mushiness was completely out of place and out of character for both Killers. Obviously Millar was pulling onew over on us for over a year now, no wonder he was scared to release this final issue. But I've got news for you, Mr. Millar: I read the entire series in my LCS and decided to buy the trade if it ended well.

:D

This is my face as you're realizing you didn't make a dime off me, you grandstanding sack of $#!+!

[Mickey Mouth]

What a crap ending. Not as bad as the one in Chosen, but still pretty shite. Millar's I'm-so-clever cynicism is getting really tired. He's not as clever or naughty as he thinks, and it's really starting to drag his work down.

Millar's name on a book used to make it an automatic buy for me. Not anymore. These days, Millar's name on a book means there's a 50/50 chance I won't like it, and an even stronger chance that the ending will suck.

[Incubuscraft]

I agree that issue #5 was a let-down, mainly because it pre-supposed that the "hero" of the story will always win regardless of the odds. The deaths of Sucker and #$%&-head were particularly weak.

That being said, if you ignore issue 5 the series as a whole is pretty good. The end of 6 was unexpected and even though 6 was pretty slow overall, I enjoyed it. Issue 6 did not live up the the promise of issue 2...but it was still better than average.

so:

Issue 2 gets an A, issue 5 gets a D...and the rest of the series gets a B- (mainly on the strength of 2 and the last page of 6)

[Dr. Slim]

Just picked this up the other day. I thought the final twist would be somehing more impersonal, something more aloof, related to the logic of Millar's alternate universe instead of Wesley's emotional life...but this ending makes sense. Millar has been writing thinly veiled family melodrama for some time now - in Spiderman, in The Ultimates - and its not all that strange that this series begins as old-school Millar (all about surface effects and story logic) and ends up as new Millar (who boils all his own tricks down to personal drama).

The part that leaves a bad taste in my mouth: this kid turned the world upside-down because he had daddy issues - - and his father planned the whole thing because he was guilty about being a deadbeat dad. So these two can rewrite the entire history of the world, but they only do it because they're trapped in some cuddly, atomic-family, father-son vibe?

I guess it makes sense. People will do any damn fool thing to...um...discover themselves. This story started out as a serious audience flattery narrative. We get to identify with this poor kid who is completely alienated and doesn't know that he was born to rule the world...and he's better than normal people but also morally superior to the other villains...it's like Garden State with guns. Then we discover at the end of the story that Wesley isn't really empowered, only traumatized in a new way...and now we can't like him or feel sorry for him (see final panel).

Millar's Message: Daddy still cares, and that's all the matters.

The Real Message: Self-discovery is freakin' evil.

Still, a very interesting series, moreso because it struggles so hard (and so unsuccessfully) to work out its major themes. There is a great deal of sincerity here, but never a moment of moral clarity. Millar blows it because he's so careful not to give himself an easy out.

[CyclopsScott]

I got 1 and 2 at the same time. Read 1, hated it, regretted getting 2 as well, absolutely dreading it, and wound up VERY pleasantly surprised. Loved the second issue and was on for the run from that point.

It continued nicely, but started to drag by issue 5, and of course we had to wait forever for 6 to come out. Giordano doing the flashbacks was nifty, but really, this issue seemed more like a oneshot special side story than the climax to the whole damn thing.

By the end Millar had me 100% pissed off. Not the comic, not the character, but Millar. Not only does he consistently insult the audience, but he it took him 6 issues spread over 3 calendar years to do it. Honestly, after reading #6, I had that feeling after reading #1 all over again, but this time in regards to the whole thing. Ugh.

Average at best. Big fat C overall rating. Some awesome action, yes, but it just boiled down to a creator-owned super accurate Punisher who swears a lot shooting up a bunch of other creator-owned ripoffs.

Yeah, I know you either love or hate Millar's work, but jeez, you shouldn't flipflop like that on a series in 6 issues...

Scott Summerton

[Truth & Justice]

I think that for all the great concepts and characterizations, this was ulimately a weak story with a weak ending.

The guilt ridden father felt like a contrivance.

[Dr. Slim]

Y'know...I think I've put my finger on what's bothering me so much about this series. Seaguy does the same idea and does it better. Just think about what Anti-Dad means.