Writer – Bill Mantlo
Artist – Sal Buscema
Inker – Sal Buscema
Colours – Ben Sean
Letters – Jim Novak

Rom is in Project Safeguard, the installation that had been set up to monitor alien activity, but not all is as it seems. Completely run by and filled with Dire Wraiths, Rom probably picked the wrong building to invade, but it is something he has to do.  It was obvious from the start that Rom would be captured as he is on the Wraith’s home turf and he is soon laid out on the Magneto Disc so that they might experiment on him.  Sister Sweet is the Wraith who wants to explore the being that is the Spaceknight,  but she is thwarted by the High One who just wants him and Firefall/Archie Stryker, dead.  Rom and Stryker will not go down as easy as the Wraiths might want and Firefall creates a diversion while Rom manages to break free.  Rom then takes the fight to the Wraiths and Stryker makes the ultimate sacrifice so that Rom can regain his Neutralizer, the one thing that the Wraiths truly fear.  Bill Mantlo and Sal Buscema deliver another exciting story with this particular issue, filled with action and drama of the highest calibre.  The Wraith hierarchy is explored a little bit in this book and readers finally see the demise of Sister Sweet, something that has been a long time in the coming.  The High One has barely made any appearances up until this point in time but seems like he will be a formidable foe for Rom should they ever meet.  The book is left with Rom having to make a hard choice, a decision he knows will have ramifications but choose he must.  While Mantlo continues to kill it with the writing aspect, Buscema keeps outdoing himself with every book as Rom strikes an imposing figure whether amongst the humans or against the aliens.  This book is a science-fiction drama on the highest level and when combined with the Marvel style of superheroes, it has consistently been a must-read book from the outset.  The next issue also looks like it will be much of the same and that is a good thing.

4.5 out of 5