Bloodshot Salvation #12
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Artist: Doug Braithewaite
Colourist: Jordie Bellaire
Letterer: Simon Bowland
Publisher: Valiant
Review by Josh Rose
Ray Garrison has been trapped in the year 4001 A.D. separated from his family who have been on the run from the paramilitary group called Omen. Bloodshot’s daughter has been taken by them, and Magic and the Bloodshot squad are mounting a rescue attempt, but they have to deal with the nanite-enhanced monster known as Rampage. Bloodshot Salvation #12 is a wonderful character study of the man who has gone from weapon to father.
It’s over. This is it. Jeff Lemire started his run on the nanite soldier back in 2015 with The Valiant; he forced his humanity on him and took him on an adventure through Bloodshot Reborn, Bloodshot USA, and ending here with Bloodshot Salvation #12. This long journey occurred so that he could learn to be human again after being a weapon for so long. What better way to do that than to make him a parent?
Doug Braithewaite’s art is good; it’s full of action and all of the characters are very expressive. My favorite panel is of Punk Mambo sitting on the couch eating pizza with voodoo dolls of the Bloodshots next to her. But it seems like Braithewaite and Jordie Bellaire didn’t ink it. There are greys and browns where it would have been more effective to have black inks. Bellaire does a great job on colours, but I don’t feel like she quite got the right shade of blackish blue-grey for Rampage. All of the grey and browns sort of blend together and the red eyes and circles of the Bloodshots really pop out against.
The Verdict: Buy it.
Bloodshot Salvation #12 is the action-packed finale to Lemire’s run on Bloodshot. Before Lemire took on Bloodshot, I saw him as a flat military character–a Punisher and Wolverine knock off. Now, I’m kind of sad; it feels like the end of an era.
