"Getting Back Together"
Writer/artist: Martin Eden
Publisher: Ominous Comics
Part of the drama of the first O Men series was driven by an unseen incident in the team's past in which a previous incarnation of the team was decimated. So far in this second series, one member of that group, Stuart, has returned from the dead, and his wife Grace, one of the chief protagonists from the first run, has gone missing following a nervous breakdown (having never truly recovered from Stuart's death) and subsequently has been found running a superhuman cult. Clearly, explanations are needed, and Martin Eden sets this issue aside to explore how the cast are adjusting to all the shenanigans.
Predictably, there's not much action in this issue, as the cast instead work through more personal, internal, problems. This could easily come across as cloying melodrama, but Eden doesn't force his characters into over-the-top soap operatics; his strength as a writer has always been in the way he handles his characters and here again, he just lets them get on with it. As a result, their personalities speak for themselves; it's natural and believable writing, and it puts many of Eden's professional peers to shame. If there is a flaw, it's that the issue feels a little light, as we really don't get much more than a few scenes of dialogue, but they're so well conceived that it seems churlish to complain.
As for the art, it's not the most visually stunning of comics, as most of the issue consists merely of characters chatting with each other. That said, Eden makes sure that this never gets boring; there's a lot of variety in the storytelling, and he also chucks in some effective visual effects for flashbacks and the like (including a very well done segue from the opening flashback sequence to a "silent" title page). It's a subtle and understated look, but no less impressive for that. All in all, this is a good strong issue, driven by solid, thoughtful character work and intelligent plot construction. It's not the most vastly impressive issue of this series, but there's something to be said for quiet expertise.
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