Review by Ian Keogh

A new aspect Cody Ziglar has introduced to Miles Morales is the idea of therapy to cope with trauma. It’s a worthwhile exploration adding to the character’s realism. Any school child experiencing a traumatic experience would in a responsible society have the opportunity to talk things through with someone qualified, and in Gang War alone Miles went through enough to justify the procedure, never mind beforehand. Both here and in earlier volumes it’s refreshing to see.

It runs well alongside Miles caring for people, even those he’s fought. Shift is now back, and Miles is concerned about Rabble despite the discovery of her supplying tailored technical weapons to New York’s villains. If readers feels that concern is misplaced, Ziglar ensures there’s sympathy via adding to her background, this time via heartache rather than jealousy. Far less sympathetic is Agent Gao, despite tragedy in her past, and with her task force disbanded she makes an alliance crossing a line.

As seen by the sample art, Federico Vicentini is extremely talented, but when he moves from relatively everyday scenes his instincts go askew and odd angled viewpoints and distorted figures occupy cluttered panels. It’s especially noticeable on the title story’s final chapter, which otherwise incorporates some neat effects to reflect what’s going on. This collection takes a nostalgic look back through Miles’ earlier artistic creators, so the others credited all work on a single extended chapter.

Picking up on what was introduced during Gang War, much of Retribution is a team effort, with Ms. Marvel, Shift and Starling helping out, although never to the point of squeezing Miles from top billing. His is the life followed, and while this volume is action-oriented overall, the penultimate chapter is a family and friends special.

A short final chapter drawn by Eleanora Carlini leads into the following Blood Hunt in which R’ym’r and his energy vampires return.