Captain Britain and MI13 #11 Review

CAPTAIN BRITAIN AND MI13 #11
Written by Paul Cornell
Art by Leonard Kirk

Captain Britain and MI13 continues to be one of the best books on the stands from Marvel. If you were late jumping on acclaimed runs from years past, such as Captain America or Immortal Iron Fist, do yourself a favour and grab the first trade of this book and get yourself caught up because this is the same deal and people will be talking about this title in the next few years when recommendation lists make their rounds.

Cornell wastes no time continuing with the Dracula storyline setup last issue. All of the cliffhangers we were left with were picked up with at the onset of this issue. While everyone survives these attacks, how our heroes get out of each was quite interesting.

The attack on Captain Britain and Pete Wisdom actually succeeded in going off, as was shown last issue, but was not enough to kill either character. However, Captain Britain broke up the spell halfway through, preventing a full on explosion. Cap's date didn't seem to fair too well, though, and the innocent civilians who happened to be passing by were also left littering the streets in pieces, literally.

Switching gears to the now free falling Faiza, who's codename was revealed as Excalibur this issue, and Black Knight, I was a little disappointed with the magic deus ex save for each of them as Faiza uses her healing powers to heal through their injuries as they slam into the ground without a parachute. It just sets a prescedent for some easy 'get out of jail free' cards with a character that can allow them to survive just about any situation. However, the writing of the scene did help make the moment more believable and it's just a small hang up on that one detail at this point.

Finally, Faiza's family were attacked by Dracula and her father was kidnapped, most likely as a tool to use against the holy sword wielding, Faiza. Dracula left a declaration of war, written in blood, of course, for Blade, the only person he chose not to attack in this opening salvo.

What was great about the follow up scene to the carnage was the fact the team acted like the government agency and trained group they are. They didn't just puff up their chests, stomp their feet and rush off to fight the bad guys like other team books. They rallied together, called a meeting with other government agencies and discussed their options while weeding out any traitors for this obvious setup. This didn't mean they ignored what happened or didn't express any emotions beause they definitely did, but that doesn't mean they have to be stupid either. Just a great and refreshing reaction to what happened and just one thing that makes this book great.

Finally, Spitfire, who went chasing after her brother, who's been turned into a vampire, last issue is shown being led to Dracula. Her brother had been attempting to get her to join them willingly while they walked, but, in the end, Spitfire outright refused him before being led into the waiting Dracula. Dracula, being the lord of vampires, used his will to subjucate Spitfire and force her to join him. I'm not sure on the exact powers of Dracula in the Marvel Universe, so I'm not sure how binding this servitude is, but I imagine she'll be freed by her new boyfriend, Blade, at some point during this arc.

Verdict - Must Read. Great follow up to Dracula's sneak attacks last issue make up the bulk of this issue. Add quality character moments and solid artwork and it's a Must Read all the way.

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