Bloodshot Salvation #12 is the final issue in this series for Bloodshot. It’s all been leading up to this issue and all I can say is, while it was good, it felt really rushed. This entire series has been one of ups and downs, but for the most part, I’m happy with where this one ended. At the same time, I’m glad it did end.
I say that because the story sputtered so many times in this series and there was a lot of filler that was to be had. From the “artless” black issue (the worst comic book I’ve ever bought) to the issue that was made just to show the backstory of Rampage (a character that I felt could have been much more imposing and frightening than what he turned out to be), it just felt like the story wasn’t thought through very well for a full 12 issue arc.
I really like Jeff Lemire’s writing, but along with Matt Kindt (X-O Manowar), I kind of feel like both of them have been stretched too thin with the amount of writing they have been doing. They both have writing projects with other companies going on and I think maybe Valiant’s books have been the ones to suffer a bit for it. Thankfully Doug Braithwaite’s art is simply beautiful to look upon and Jeff Lemire’s story found some footing in the last several issues to bring this series to completion.
Everything comes down to Bloodshot returning from 4002 AD to the present time and then saving his daughter from the clutches of an evil sanctioned government project and Rampage. The only issue, Rampage doesn’t really prove to be too hard to deal with and wrapping up the 4002 AD storyline left a ton of questions that I fear may never be answered.
I know for a fact that they won’t be answered in the next Bloodshot series that hits later this year because that series takes place in the past. So this resolution becomes a cliffhanger that gnaws at the fans of the 4002 AD time period. I really liked this issue, I just wish it had been about 20 pages longer to really be able to flesh out the scenes so they didn’t feel so rushed.
Wrap Up
So was this series worth it? I enjoyed it for the most part. There were about 3 or 4 issues that could have been done better but it was a good read. I’m not sure I’ll be buying the next series on a monthly basis since it is basically a prequel (getting people ready for the Vin Diesel Bloodshot movie that just started filming this week most likely). Bloodshot is a really interesting character and I can think of several interesting directions for him to take from here, we’ll just have to wait and see what Valiant writers will have in store for him.
