In the wake of the CATALYST WAR, Marshall Ward is RADIANT BLACK for good! But not everyone in Chicago is happy with their new hero—and between a mysterious killer on the hunt, an online conspiracy threatening to spill into the real world, and new factions rising as the city rebuilds, this bold new era of RADIANT BLACK could be over before it’s begun! Collects RADIANT BLACK #31-36
After the Catalyst War, Radiant Black volume 7 feels like a welcome return to the series' roots. This volume has a more regular superhero feel, focusing on a more grounded conflict within Chicago as Marshall Ward permanently takes on the mantle of Radiant Black.
Marshall continues to be a fun protagonist, and he's still funny. The Siri stuff got me laughing. I also enjoyed seeing the dynamic with Radiant Pink as his roommate. It's a great way to show the day-to-day life of a superhero. However, the volume isn't without its issues. The exploration of other dimensions feels underdeveloped and the lack of an exciting villain makes the plot a bit too predictable. With a mysterious killer, an online conspiracy, and new factions rising in the city, the setup is intriguing, but the execution of these threats is not as compelling as it could have been.
Overall, it's a solid volume. It's better than the last one, but not as good as the early volumes of the series. A 3 out of 5.
The Catalyst War may be over, but its effects are far-reaching, as Marshall deals with his new life as a lone superhero, and remnants of the Second Earth dimension threaten to literally blow everything up around him.
It's always a bit of a comedown for a book after such a BIG arc, especially one as big as the Catalyst War was. But this one taps back into the human aspect of the series, keeping the focus squarely on Marshall even as we get glimpses of what else is going on elsewhere. The bomber/serial killer angle is neat, and has a good resolution to it, while the final issue that focuses on a very temporary Radiant Yellow keeps the whole human angle theme going as well to round the volume out.
Oh, and Rogue Sun shows up! I do like a mini-crossover.
Great return to form from this volume. The catalyst war felt a bit convoluted towards the end. While I enjoyed the split timeline aspect of the previous arc, it became overly complicated and tough to keep track of. This volume takes a turn back to Marshall being the sole Radiant Black and it’s definitely for the better. Looking forward to the next volume
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I’m back for Radiant Black volume 7!! It’s still great!!
It’s been quite a few months since I last read volume 6 (or any books in general) and I’m really happy and intrigued by the new direction this comic is going towards!! I think walking through the fallout of the catalyst war is super interesting, and I’m liking the dynamic between radiant black and pink living together!!
The art continues to be great as usual with massive-verse books, SPECIALLY with the radiant yellow issue!!
Just super happy to continue to see this comic thrive, love!!
After the wild double-timeline events of the last two trades, this takes the new Radiant Black through the aftermath in a way that feels grounded and fresh, and still has a page-long tangent about Billy Zane movies that made me smile. This is such a great series, not slowing down.
9/10 A great character driven story for RB fans, really liked the story and villain. Great action and visuals and really liked how they showed the aftermath of Catalyst War.