The weirdness of sci-fi and the joy of pets come together in Man’s Best, a new series Pornsak Pichetshote and Jesse Lonergan wowed us within the first issue. Man’s Best #2 kicks off today in comic shops, revealing whether or not the emotional support animals can go toe to toe with giant alien robots! It’s a chaotic frenzy of action and cuteness, and it may even bring a tear to your eye.
Fear not for tears, at least for most of the issue, as Man’s Best #2 opens with the feline leader Athos, loyal retriever Porthos, and grumpy bulldog Lovey dodging rockets and drones right off the bat. There’s a central conflict at play here outside of the threat of alien robots, and that’s Porthos not following Athos’ orders. Athos is the leader, but Porthos follows their nose and instincts more than listens. They can’t help it. These animals truly care for one another, but it’s frustrating when each has a different power and works best together.
Lonergan shows off the different abilities to full effect, from Porthos’ spherical shield to Lovey’s ease of movement. They aren’t necessarily trained for this, but they’re doing their best and staying alive. The threats are scary, adding high stakes even when these pets escape doom left and right. The energy is fast-paced from the start and doesn’t let up to the very end.
On the pet side of things, Pichetshote and Lonergan get to show these pets as cute animals. You see it with Porthos rushing to find their owner or Lovey totally leaning into a massage element in the environment. They’re definitely cute pets, albeit who can talk to one another and strategize.
Look at those energy blasts!
Credit: BOOM!
The wonderment kicks into gear when the pets witness a lone robot tearing the head off another. Some strange worldbuilding goes on with the aliens, further exemplified when the robots stand in tandem, and then organic creatures come into play. Lonergan is very good at capturing a creature’s cuteness and showing how incredibly dangerous they are in the next panel. These pets must be careful, further forcing the need to work together.
The character acting is also great, from Lovey’s rage-fueled shouting to Porthos’ stubbornness. Athos is also caring, concerned, and a natural-born leader simply by their actions. Lonergan also employs his fantastic sense for layout design with some showstoppers here and there.
Something missing is the general plot progression, though. The world-building, character acting, and stakes are high, but the larger mystery of where the humans went or even where these pets are is missing. This issue is one long chase, which is entertaining for sure but also lacks a deeper plot.
Man’s Best #2 continues to be a rollicking good time of weird sci-fi and fabulous characters doing amazing things. This series will please young and old with art that’s electric and characters that jump off the page.
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