Review by Ian Keogh

Nemesis is the character Mark Millar’s had two tries at defining, and the star of Rogues’ Gallery is the Michael Anderson version introduced in Nemesis Reloaded. As that ended he fell in with the wrong crowd for Big Game, and as this opens the former world’s greatest supervillain is still recovering from severe injuries sustained there, paralysed from the neck down. Not that he didn’t deserve it, sociopathic scum that he is.

As he’s the title character, it’s inevitable we’ll see Nemesis back in action again, but Millar’s inspirations for having him reach that stage are all too obvious. As a means to an end this is surprising, but not a fatal flaw, even if they indulge an unpleasantly sadistic streak that occasionally manifests in Millar’s work. Still, we are dealing with the world’s greatest supervillain.

Nemesis has learned a lesson from his humiliating defeat, and because he so egotistical it’s not that he should slink away somewhere and live in obscurity. No, he wants to gather and train others to arrange his revenge, which is Millar exploring another aspect of Nemesis as Batman’s evil mirror image. We now have the equivalent of Robin. What Nemesis apparently doesn’t know is that he has a target on his back.

Valerio Giangiordano is best known for his cover illustrations, but his track record in Italy includes comics work, and there’s certainly no uncertainty apparent here. He tells the story efficiently and moves the characters from panel to panel well, although there can be a stiffness to individual figures and expressions. Nemesis looks good when seen, and no longer the guy who seemingly stops to change into a clean white costume between panels.

Rogues’ Gallery isn’t the Nemesis we’ve seen before. In fact, there’s more in common with the impossible caper plots Millar provided for Kingsman than the action thrillers Nemesis has generated in the past. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, and the justification could be that Nemesis needed vast amounts of money and advanced technology for his plans, and now we know how he acquires both.

The ending is as nasty as the start, and sets up a sequel, but Rogues’ Gallery works in fits and starts rather than being the complete thrill.