My personal recommendation is that you go and buy this book. Get a copy off the shelf, seek out the beautiful variant covers produced and add this to your collection. Matt Kindt has written an excellent book here with great accompanying art work. This book is worth the cover price just for seeing the introduction of Kommandar Bloodshot.

If you're a TMNT fan this is a must for your pull list. There is a familiar feel you can sense Kevin Eastman's imprint still on these stories but also with the start of a fresh arc and universe you can jump in here as a newbie and not feel like you've missed a huge amount (even though you will end up with a ton of back reading because it's so addictive). The art and writing quality go hand in hand. The color artist has matched these quality levels to form a really high quality book. This is one you don't want to miss.

On the whole this issue is a thrilling read with some surprising moments in a book that's well paced and has superb art from start to finish. Komandar Bloodshot is fast becoming one of my favorite characters in the Valiant Universe, let alone Stalinverse. Again, as previously stated, the ending feels a little predictable but this does not detract from the story as a whole.

This is my first experience of Harris' writing and based on this story alone it's a name I will be keeping an eye out for, and as for Cafu I look forward to seeing his work continue to grow.

On the whole the story was easy reading and the art was very easy on the eye. As a stand alone book it ended a bit too abruptly for me, however I am hoping it's picked up in the main story. I also would have liked to have seen more of Shadowman's origin. The fight sequence and the releasing of the powers of the undead were excellent highlights in a book that delivered on most levels. Stalinverse continues to roll on with great consistency and stirring intrigue.