EDITOR's NOTE: Warhammer: Crown of Destruction #1 will be in stores October 8.

Plot: When the Chaos vermin Skaven rise from their endless burrows, there's always a vile purpose in mind. So when a vast horde equipped with unfathomable weaponry sweep into a backwater of the Empire, disgraced Greatsword leader Frohlich knows there has to be a reason. But can he find out what it is before the thin shield of human steel shatters beneath an irresistible hail of warpstone bullets?

Comments: Let’s get right to it then, shall we? Kieron Gillen (Phonogram, New Universal) is a decent writer. This comic is proof enough of that. Storyline wise, this sssue is nothing new, especially to Warhammer. As mentioned in the plot-line above, this pretty standard stuff for a fantasy story. However, having said that, a pretty standard story well-told is a good story. This is exactly what Gillen has created: a good story.

The characters, again, are all pretty well known people in fantasy stories. Frohlich, the main character, I seem to have known for years, for no other reason than the fact that I’ve read about this same character in a hundred different fantasy stories, though he seemed to take on a different guise and use another name. However, you have to give praise where it’s due, and again, Gillen does a great job of telling us about characters we already know. The dialogue is what you would expect, but with some pretty good lines chucked in to keep you from groaning.

Art comes by way of Dwayne Harris (Warhammer 40,000: Fire and Honour). For those of you who have never experienced it, you will be pleasantly surprised. It’s comic book art, but not comic book art. It has a very different feel to it, for lack of a better word, and characters and backgrounds are all pretty well done. There were one or two panels hat I didn’t like, but then again, there always are. Harris uses plenty of epic angles for the battle scenes and he draws some of the best Skaven I have seen.

The cover art also deserves mentioning. Cover A is the best of the two and also the most relevant to what happens in this issue. Cover B depicts some vampire guy. Don’t ask me why. Both covers are done by Karl Richardson, and both are great.

Final Word: A solid first issue. Not too adventurous, but not pants either. Art is good, writing is good, covers are good. It’s all good. People more familiar with Warhammer mythos will enjoy this far more than those who are not however, although you won’t need any previous knowledge of the mythos to enjoy the story.

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