Overview: In Outsiders #2, the team investigates a storm that has been going on for a quarter century. In the investigation, they encounter the Challengers of the Unknown. Are the Challengers friend or foe?
Title: Outsiders #2
Writer: Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly
Artist: Robert Carey
Cover Artist: Roger Cruz with Adriano Lucas
Variant Covers: Serg Acuna (1:25), David Marquez with Alejandro Sanchez
Release Date: December 12, 2023
This comic book review contains spoilers.
Image brings a mystery to the table. She recounts a mission while she was at West Point. The mission was to observe the Navy’s response to an unidentified storm that was giving no sign of letting up. The assignment later proved to be a disaster. Some kind of monster attacked the fleet, and the storm has not stopped since. It has been going strong for almost twenty-five years. Batwoman (Kate Kane) proposes that the Outsiders investigate this storm as a part of their charter.
Batwing (Luke Fox) agrees, provided it does not prove to be a monster hunt. On their way to the Enlil Triangle, they encounter a militia group that calls themselves the Challengers of the Unknown. Drummer knows these guys. After a montage identifying each of the members, the Challengers order Luke and his team to vacate and let them handle the monster. Luke ignores the command.
The Challengers follow Luke’s ship and prepare to engage the Outsiders. They fire on the ship, disabling the engines, but Luke’s backups go on line. There is damage, but in the Outsiders’ dive, they discover a graveyard under the depths. Batwoman goes out to investigate, but they are once again joined by the Challengers.
Both teams make contact with a creature of some kind. Drummer orders Batwoman back and to not engage the creature. The Challengers, however, prepare to engage. Batwoman does not fall back, and she does not engage the creature either. She remembers seeing it when she was a cadet, and she realizes that it was born the same day the storm started.
Batwoman realizes that the dead creatures were the family of this “child” who were all killed by Aquaman. This creature is truly alone. Both teams stand down.
Outsiders #2 Serg Acuna variant cover
On first reading, I did not like this issue. I considered it boring, full of exposition, and lacking in action. It just gave a lot of grandstanding with no follow-through. On rereading, my opinion is different.
It is still not the greatest, and I think the inclusion of the Challengers of the Unknown were shoehorned in here. They really are not seen elsewhere much, and my personal opinion is that I really do not care for this group.
What this issue does well is examining the cost of monster hunting. Luke says it himself in the beginning of the issue when he says that he does not want to become monster hunters. This issue shows the result of that. Aquaman is accused of destroying an entire species except for one young survivor who just wants to be left alone. Not every monster is a danger; some just want to exist and therefore should be allowed to just exist.
The colors in this issue gives the reader a murky feel. The constant shots of inside submersibles give a great claustrophobic feel to this story. These characters are all out of their element in the water, and it shows. I do find it a good choice not to include any Atlantean characters in this story in that it would have changed the feel and punch of this story.
Editor’s Note: DC Comics provided TBU with an advanced copy of this comic for review purposes. You can find this comic and help support TBU in the process by purchasing this issue digitally through Amazon or a physical copy of the title through Things From Another World.
