In Review: The Rocketeer: Infiltrator! #2 The Abwehr

Synopsis: An unforeseen threat changes the mission for the Rocketeer and his girlfriend, Betty. Concerned about the French Resistance, the Nazis bring in their greatest counterintelligence agent to protect their superweapon from any threat. Cliff and Betty have only just arrived in Nazi territory, and already this mission is proving more dangerous than the Allied Powers advertised… It’s a good thing they made a new friend with a license to kill.

The Story

Picking up from the last issue, Cliff, while doing a little reconnaissance as the Rocketeer, got into a spot of bother and was rescued by MI6 agent Charles Ballard, who has been posing as the male lead in the German movie in which Betty has been cast.

As the two men make their way down the mountain, they come under attack from German soldiers. This forces Ballard to lay down covering fire while Cliff retrieves his rocket pack and uses it to get them both back to the film crew’s hotel, where Cliff can reconnect with Betty. Upon returning to the hotel, Betty has to quickly hide them when she is called to the set.

Once there, all three agents take their places as the director prepares for another day’s shooting. While preparations are being made, Cliff reconnects with his CIA handler, who has infiltrated the film crew as a key grip. However, the day’s filming is interrupted when Colonel Boetticher of the Abwehr shows up. He questions the director and her crew before slowly making his way towards Betty and then Cliff. He then orders one of his men to shoot the key grip, who also happens to be Cliff and Betty’s handler.

At this point, all hell breaks loose as the Maquis, aka the French Resistance, launch an attack on Boetticher and his men. Amid the chaos, Ballard escapes with Betty and begins ascending the mountain to get a better look at the German superweapon. Meanwhile, Cliff straps on his rocket pack and finds himself dealing with a German Messerschmitt, which ultimately gets hit by the German superweapon instead of him.

Artwork

Dean Kotz and K.J. Diaz continue to deliver some stunning visuals for this book. The action comes thick and fast, and I love the sequence of panels near the start of the issue in which Cliff and Ballard barely escape a group of Nazi soldiers.

Also particularly well drawn is the sequence in which Boetticher questions the film’s director before slowly working his way around to Betty and then Cliff. The subtle expressions on the faces of the assembled film crew brilliantly sell the tension of the moment.

Overall

Gabriel Hardman continues to spin a fun and thrilling pulp adventure. The introduction of Boetticher and the Abwehr is a masterstroke in escalation, significantly raising the stakes for everyone involved. I’m looking forward to seeing where the story goes in the next issue, as it feels like Cliff and Betty’s cover may have been blown.