"The Fox is back with its 4th issue of 5 from Red Circle/Archie Comics, written by Dean Haspiel and Mark Waid, with full art by Haspiel as silver-age-revival hero The Fox swings deeper into his strange hero-journey. John Workman does an excellent silver-age modern mash-up in his lettering on the series and colors by Allen Passalaqua are a major feature of the smack-you-in-the-face appeal of the comic. The “writhing arms of destiny” deliver us the “dark embrace” of a sleek fox going multi-limbed to start things off. Foes and friends are getting thoroughly mixed up under the spell of the Druid as The Marvel attempts to clear the air with a hail of bullets. This is an issue for show-downs with the Mad King whose slated for rescue, and the Druid himself. Things take The Fox down to an ultimate low but there he finds—something beyond himself with more power than his own non-superpowered self. I don’t want to give away too many spoilers, but it’s typical of the strong concepts behind this comic that the biggest action scenes (of which there are of course many) are also the points where the storytelling reaches thematic pitch about the forces that drive us in life.
The whole series so far could be read in purely allegorical terms about the endless complications of trying to maintain good intentions while overwhelmed by unreasonable demands in life, telling us that that’s where we come to grips with our own best and worst nature in a kind of rock bottom that’s the turning point for big revelations. That kind of analysis, though, doesn’t do justice to the playful, intense artwork that takes us through the steps of a hero on the run from himself who might just discover what super powers really are in a way that is meaningful for us common folk who pick up the comic in the first place. The big question too is—what does issue #5 as a finale hold? Then we’ll have the complete picture of the developing ideas in the comic. The backup Shield stories in The Fox are paving the way for the series to follow, too, and take you into an even more Silver Age world of galactic sci-fi facing an indomitable hero. And what does this all have to do with The Fox? Things are heating up for a big finale and plenty of reveal, by the look of it." --Hannah Means-Shannon
