Luke Cage: Gang War #1

Bachs delivers some great art in the issue. The imagery beautifully captures the rising tension of the story and the action is thrilling. Read Full Review

I'm intrigued by Luke Cage: Gang War, as it puts Luke Cage in a tough position. How does he balance his two jobs while staying true to his oath to serve the people? That's a compelling argument to make while he busts heads in the night. Read Full Review

Luke Cage: Gang War #1 is strengthened by the power of its protagonist. Both isolated and connected to the rest of the crossover, it is the characters that keep it interesting. Read Full Review

Luke Cage: Gang War #1 hooks you right into the event with dynamic ideas and a political element. Read Full Review

Where do we go from here? Heroes for Hire? Marvel Knights 2024? Read Full Review

An uneven debut is a shame for Luke Cage: Gang War #1, which started with an excellent premise and opportunity for fresh artistic opportunities. Instead, what was delivered was a solid script undercut by a safe yet bland art style and restrained color palette. The lack of a creative or developed costume for Cages vigilante moonlighting could have been a saving grace for the series, but instead exemplifies everything wrong with it; directionless, boring, and afraid to play up the bigger status quo. Read Full Review

Let's just hope the rest of "Gang War" gets off to a better start than Luke Cage. Read Full Review

derbycomics

Dec 01, 2023

Writer Rodney Barnes and artist Ramon Bachs deliver a captivating tale that delves into the complex world of New York City's criminal underworld, with Mayor Luke Cage at the center of the conflict. Like ASM: Gange War - First Strike, I really enjoyed how much this felt like it could be happening in real-life in the most dire situation. It's not a cosmic threat like what's happening in DC's Beast World event, but the political intrigue and human elements of this story might be even more interesting to me.

Screaming Enigma

Dec 02, 2023

A really solid opening issue for Gang War's first tie-in miniseries. I haven't read anything from Barnes at the time of this writing, so I wasn't really sure what to expect. Luckily, I think Barnes wrote Luke well, along with the other characters in the story. I particularly enjoyed Luke's interactions with Miss Estelle.

Kenjamin

Jul 28, 2024

Art: 3/5 Story: 3.5/5 Total: 6.5/10

CrazyforRAMU

Nov 01, 2025

I see no reason to dislike this comic, and I WANT to like it, but I just don't. Both the words and the art strike me as slow and stiff. The reactions it evokes in me are boredom and mild disappointment.

Psycamorean

May 08, 2024

As someone who has enjoyed Rodney Barnes' work in the past... This ain't it.