Image Comics reviews 5/27/26 – Void Rivals 30, Corpse Knight 2

Void Rivals 30

Void Rivals 30 massively shakes up the status quo for the lead-off book for the Energon Universe putting its two main characters on an entirely new path in the wake of the conclusion of The Quintesson War.

Writer Robert Kirkman takes some daring chances in Void Rivals 30 with the gruesome death of one core character and totally upends the direction of the series prior to the start of the arc. While some titles can make a major departure from the initial story and it suffers drastically from it, Void Rivals 30 sets the series up in a direction that should make for even more fun adventures and more appealing to new readers.

Solila and Darak find themselves on the losing end of the war with the Quintesson Tribunal turning the tide for the Quintessons who conquer both of their home worlds. Zertonia survives the conflict, but only by bending the knee while Darak’s Agorrians are largely vanquished. Their only hope lies in escaping the Outer Rim with Pythona and her Cobra-La troops and get reinforcements from Darak and Solila’s Autobot allies. This is a bold new direction, but it really feels like an exciting new approach — one that fully links the three initial books of the Energon Universe together.

Artist Andrei Bressan delivers fantastic artwork from the opening pages with Darak and his father battling Sharkticons after being found innocent, Proximus and Ultum surveying the battle from the outskirts like vigilante superheroes and the Quintessons stand triumphant. Bressan really provided high-end artwork for an arc that demanded it and he came through in a major way.

Colorist Dee Cunniffe also brought spectacular colors to this war giving the pages a vibrancy that perfectly conveyed the major stakes at play. Letterer Rus Wooton always gets so much to work with on this title and Void Rivals 30 was no exception with the distinct dialogue for the Quintessons, Zerta Trion, Darak, Solila and the Handroid as well as the creative sound effects.

Void Rivals 30 ends in an unexpected manner with the heroes clearly licking their wounds, but the series seems poised to jump to another level with this forthcoming arc.

Rating: 10 out of 10

After reading Void Rivals 30, pre-order the entire Quintesson War arc with Void Rivals Vol. 5 on trade paperback on Amazon.

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