Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Planet Of The Apes #6
Boom! Studios
Gregory & Magno
Planet of the Apes continues to be a solid read month in and month out. As the war continues to escalate this issue takes a step back to explain some of what came before. At the same time the current timeline opens up the universe a bit as we begin to move to the outskirts of the ghetto city, Skintown. Overall, this issue inches the plot threads forward collectively but we really get some character growth on the human front. Overall, this is another solid effort in this franchise.
The most interesting part of this issue is the scene at Delphi, which has been referenced often over the previous six issues. Delphi was the last human city some twenty years ago when the apes and humans were at war. Bako was called to arms as the outer wall was breached. As the last human city fell to the apes, Bako was one of the only humans to survive. His family slaughtered, he found hope in the form of his infant daughter who also survived. These scenes were powerful in terms of showing the motivation behind Mako’s character as well as explaining some of how the apes defeated the humans, pushing the humans into the ghetto.
Secondarily, this issue moves the boundaries of the human’s world as Bako looks for allies in the forest and Sullivan finds refuge in one of the few places the apes won’t go: the swamps. This allows for some areas where covert actions can (and do) get launched while providing a bit of a safe haven for the humans. With the swamp as the staging area for the humans fighting back it will be interesting to see how the apes combat this development. All of this opens up a lot of new possibilities for future stories which is a good thing.
Finally, another strength in the issue is the artwork. This issue finally allows for some epic battle scenes and the art team is up to the challenge. I found the flashbacks to Delphi to be very effective at showing how brutal the war between the apes and humans has and can be. The scene when Bako discovers his family is particularly powerful and haunting. Overall, this issue has a terrific visual story.
Planet of the Apes is quickly becoming one of my favorite reads. Each issue builds on the next and is bringing together a very dense and comprehensive story. The only real drawback with this issue is that the characters aren’t necessarily introduced which makes the issue very unfriendly for new readers. Still, you won’t find a better depiction of the Planet of the Apes universe. I definitely recommend this issue.
3.5 out of 5 Geek Goggles
