DMZ #62

Written by Brian Wood
Art by Riccardo Burchielli

After a few months of flashbacks and one-off issues, Wood has brought us back to the current situation in Manhattan, as the United States Army enters the city in large numbers.  They have finished their massive bombing campaign, and are now making their way through the city with the goal of taking control of it, and then coordinating their entry into Free States territory.

Matty Roth, the usual main character of this series, is traveling with them in his new role as embedded journalist.  Matty's been used by Liberty News and the army before, but he agrees that an independent, impartial record of the invasion needs to be kept, and that he is probably the only person able to do the job.  It's amusing that for most of the issue, the soldiers don't attempt to make use of Matty's superior knowledge of the territory, and he doesn't volunteer it.

This series has been about Matty's growth more than anything.  Here, he reflects on the attitudes and actions of the soldiers entering the DMZ for the first time, and recognizes in them his own earlier self.  What remains to be seen is how Matty will leave this particular part of his journey, especially after an old, familiar face shows up towards the end of the issue.

I feel like, as the series nears its end, Wood is finally able to put into play some things he's been planning for a long time, and that makes this series exciting again.  It's very nice to see regular artist Burchielli back on the book, as he's been gone for a little while now.