• Mephisto has taken up some major real estate in Las Vegas, but he's not going to stop there. He's got the rest of Earth on his "TO GET" list and only Doctor Strange can stop him.
• The only downside? Strange went into Mephisto's Hotel Inferno to confront him and has not been seen since.
• Add the fact that the devilish villain has already corrupted several Avengers, and Wong and his rag-tag group of mystical heroes look like they're in serious trouble.
Rated T+
I hate to pick on Nick Spencer because I have enjoyed some of his work like Astonishing Ant-Man and Sam Wilson: Captain America. This issue of Damnation seemed to be more Spencer influenced than Cates and it suffers. It feels like it is trying to be cute because it takes place in Vegas by making it an Ocean's Eleven style heist. Humor and all. It just falls flat. Seeing Wong bring the team together feels cheap. I would have rather seen the team slowly build to a new Midnight Sons. It also gave me a very frustrating moment when Wong says he has files on everyone's assignment. First we are told Man-Thing does not read. I don't know much about Man-Thing, but I did read the five part mini and he can read in that so we have inconsistency. Then Wong says their assignment is distract the Ghost Rider infected Avengers. That is it. Why did he take the time to write up files that just said that for everyone? The art in the first issue and the Doctor Strange tie-in worked well to create a very surreal landscape. The art in this issue was harder for me to get into. I don't think Szymon Kudranski is a bad artist, but I feel he was trying to create a style that is not his. The lines seemed too clean to ink it in that sketched look. The colors were all so bland with nothing that really stood out. I think the teams are trying to create a consistent feel and look but in this case it didn't feel right. I will say it had its moments though. Wong being a fan of Arsenal worked. The Ghost Rider infected heroes. I even enjoy the members of the team that has been built. I just hope they handle the rest of the series better.
© 2025
That 5 part Man-Thing series you refer to was dreadful and I will be very surprised if any future writers use that version of the character ever again.