Trinity #18 Review

Make Believe Battle Land

Written by: James Robinson
Art by: Patch Zircher, Gabe Eltaeb, and Carlos M. Mangual
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: February 21, 2018

Well, with the Trinity book coming to an end, I have to admit that the type of story we are getting from James Robinson is what I've been waiting for since it debuted in Rebirth.  Sure, it hasn't been a 10/10 (maybe to some less discerning reviewers), but send our heroes to Skartaris and team them up with Warlord and at least you have a recipe for fun.  So, does the recipe equal out to a tasty treat?  Let's find out...


The issue opens with the familiar interrogation room flashback dialogue we got the last issue.  Again, the voices of the Trinity feel a little off, but it's obvious it's here to show the different perspectives of our heroes. We then head back to Skartaris and find out Warlord is an apparition and that he is locked in an ongoing battle with Deimos.  Suddenly and not by coincidence, they are attacked by Deimos' forces and we see how kick ass Diana continues to be and that if you ever want to survive crazy superhero monster shit, ask yourself, "what would Batman do".

After surviving the attack, the trio is greeted by Warlord's daughter, Jennifer, in apparition form.  She repeats some of her father's earlier dialogue before dropping a new knowledge bomb...Warlord is dead!  Say What?!?!?  It's true, but after telling our heroes to avoid places like the ones they are currently in (thanks, Jenn!), she disappears and it's time for Bruce, Clark, and Diana to follow the yellow brick road...on Unicorns.  Two flavors that go great together right there!

 After a running into a bunch of Deimos' baddies, they eventually get to the city of Shamballah.  The crazy battle going on reminded me of an all-out toy battle at Eric Shea's house on a Sunday afternoon and if you don't know what that means, I feel for you!  It's a fantasy battle royale and after the Trinity fight there way to Jennifer and the good guys, the cliffhanger reveals it may be too late...for them!

This is an okay issue.  To go back to my recipe analogy from earlier, it's like James Robinson was ready to bake a cake for us, but he didn't have every single ingredient readily available.  Mind you, what he made was still a cake, but there was something missing.  The story kind of jumps from scene to scene with nothing feeling important or connected.  Maybe it's because Robinson never really gave the reader any solid footing where Skartaris was involved, but I found myself disinterested in the overall story and just looking at the art.

Speaking of which, Patch Zircher's art was really good here and most of the good times come from his fantastical beasts and mythological battles.  It's fun to look at, but unfortunately, it can't elevate the story past a bit over mediocre.

Bits and Pieces:

James Robinson sets up what could be a fun side story here, but the overall narrative is a bit of a bore as our heroes are forced from one scene to another without much to engage the reader.  Patch Zircher's art is fantastically good, but in the end, this story is skippable even for fans of the Trinity.

5.8/10