Review: Solider Zero by Stan Lee, Paul Cornell, Javier Pina, Sergio Arino et al. (Volume One)

Synopsis: Having lost the use of his legs during the Afghanistan War, Captain Stewart Trautmann returned stateside with an understandingly negative attitude towards combat and violence - but his convictions are put to the test when a devastating meteor shower brings an alien parasite that transformed him into an ultimate weapon. (from the back of the volume)

Review: After I found this cheap at used bookshop, I picked it up as it looked intriguing. Trautmann suffered the loss of his legs in military, but suffers at home as he adjusts not only to his new life without legs but to the people around him - his brother, his students, the girl he likes - and their varying ability to handle his disability. Into this falls the alien parasite who latches onto him as the host dies. In this form, he is compelled to fight the enemy of the parasite.
To begin, the story handles the disability well, expressing the both the awkwardness, the confusion, the difficulties that both the person and the people around them struggle with. As for Trautmann, he has accepted his new life, but still eagerly reaches for the change to walk again. But the violence it requires, even violence to save others, troubles him.
With bold, bright, dynamic art, strong characters, and a wicked cliff-hanger, this story has all the right elements for intriguing and fantastic story. Sadly, it was canceled after a few volumes, more due to being unable to find a foot in the cluttered world of superheros than to being a sub-par story. Worth reading!

Bookmarks: 3.5 of 5

Awards: None

ISBN: 9781608860470
Year Published: 2011
Date Finished: 3-14-2018
Pages: 86