We start with a bloodbath on the London Underground and end with a profound betrayal; all in all it's another dramatic and emotional issue of Martin Eden's superheroic soap opera.

Eden once again delivers a comic which is a veritable 'How To' guide on low-key, character-led stories in a superhero setting. While there isn't much in the way of kinetic superhero action in the issue, it is nonetheless a dramatic read as personalities and relationships are put through the grinder. There is a depth and honesty to the characterization, despite the fantastic setting, which is far more successful than many professional attempts at the same approach, mentioning no names of course, because that would be New Avengers inappropriate. There's also quite a bit going on, as Eden juggles more plots and subplots than we saw in the previous volume; there is perhaps a slight sense that with these numerous plots, and so much time spent on characterization, that the story in general isn't moving forward quite as much as it could be, but when it's all such strong work it seems churlish to complain.

The art is pretty solid; the storytelling is particularly strong, with plenty of effective page layouts and strong noir-ish panel compositions that show a keen eye for visual design. Eden sets himself a huge channel this issue with a sex scene between two of the protagonists (or maybe three; it's complicated), something which would have been very easy to do badly, but which is instead handled with a great deal of sensitivity and some clever storytelling. It's not a flashy issue, but there's something impressive about the measured subtlety of the visuals.

With this issue, Martin Eden maintains the high quality, particularly in characterization, that has become expected of The O Men; truly this title is the very model of how to do proper superhero stories for a mature audience.

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