Fire Power vol. 4: Scorched Earth

Everything wrapped up nicely last time and Owen Johnson headed home with his family after settling things between the Temple of the Flaming Fist and the Scorched Earth Clan.  Except for the fact that it turns out that Owen’s old girlfriend Ling Zang is still alive, and also a little disappointed that her former flame has moved on.  Fortunately a new threat presents itself before the fireworks start between Owen, his wife Kellie, and Ling can spark into full-blown drama.  That new threat is related to the person who disintegrated into snakes on a plane *rimshot* in the previous volume.  I doubt it would surprise anyone to learn that these people and their snakes are the forerunners for an even bigger threat than last time, and that Owen, his friends, and family are the only ones who can stop it.

This series still gives me good “‘Invincible’ as martial arts movie” vibes, even if this volume doesn’t have as many surprises to it as it seems to think it does.  Creepy as they may be, the snakes don’t pose a particularly original threat and it honestly feels like we’re getting something of a redux of the previous arc for most of the volume.  The family drama also feels pretty familiar, with only the stuff going on involving Owen’s daughter Hallie sparking some interest.  Robert Kirkman and Chris Samnee do a good job of making this all go down smoothly with pleasant writing and sharp art, but it’s hard to shake the feeling that this series is going to continue being just “good” when it could be “great.”  At least until the last few pages when a new threat presents itself and shocks the series out of its comfortable groove.  This is some next-level business that’s presented here, so let’s hope Kirkman and Samnee can deliver on its promise.