Review: Nemesis Forever #5
From Dark Horse Comics
The final issue of this series from Dark Horse Comics, and Nemesis Forever #5 lives up to its name!
The Nemesis trilogy concludes with this extra-sized finale as the final fate of the character and our world is revealed and we find out if FBI agent Kitty Tepper manages to destroy him from inside his gang. The most outrageous finale of all time!
by Mark Millar (Author), Matteo Scalera (Cover Art, Artist), Giovanna Niro (Colorist), Clem Robins (Letterer)
Rounding off this mini-series of Nemesis Forever, and possibly the character in full, this fifth issue feels like precisely the ending a figure like Nemesis deserves. He has always been a controversial, brutally violent character, and this issue fully embodies that reputation. There’s no softening the edges here — the chaos, bloodshed and destruction are all present — yet there’s also a strange sense of satisfaction to how it all wraps up. Against expectations, it delivers a somewhat feel-good conclusion, capped off with a genuinely excellent “exclamation mark” of a final moment that feels both earned and memorable.
This is the issue where Nemesis’s grand plan finally comes into focus, and it does so in a way that makes perfect sense when viewed alongside the earlier chapters. All the deaths, explosions and relentless carnage that have defined the series up to now aren’t just spectacle for spectacle’s sake. Here, we learn the why and the how behind it all, as well as the ultimate endgame Nemesis has been working toward. It’s satisfying to see those pieces slot into place, and it reinforces the idea that, as twisted as he is, Nemesis has always been several steps ahead.
Naturally, spoilers loom large as the walls begin to close in. The FBI are firmly on his trail, and an undercover agent finds themselves in what appears to be the perfect position to stop him finally. Of course, nothing in a Nemesis story is ever straightforward. The issue smartly plays with momentum, giving us peaks and valleys for both Nemesis and the agent as plans clash, control shifts, and the tension ramps up toward the finale.
The ending itself provides a clear conclusion to Nemesis’s story, while still leaving the door cracked open — perhaps for a return decades down the line — and also offering closure for those who stood against him. It’s a clever resolution, and while I had a strong suspicion this was the direction things were heading as we neared the finish, that didn’t lessen the impact one bit. Sometimes, a well-executed expected ending is far more satisfying than a forced shock, and the creative team absolutely sticks the landing here. That final panel, in particular, is beautifully handled and lingers in the mind long after the issue ends.
That naturally leads into the art, which has been consistently excellent throughout this mini-series and shines once again in this closing chapter. The combined efforts of the art, colours and lettering teams put you right in the middle of the action, whether that’s during brutal confrontations, sharp gunfire or gloriously over-the-top explosions. Everything feels loud, fast and dangerous, precisely as it should. It all feeds perfectly into the ending twist and leaves you with that unmistakable, slightly guilty grin as you turn the final page.
Long live Nemesis!
Get it at Forbidden Planet:
Read it digitally at Amazon:
Stellar review that captures what makes a good series finale work. The idea that all the chaos wasn't just spectacle but part of a larger plan is what seperates great antiheroes from one-dimensional villains. I've always thought the best comic arcs are the ones where you can look back and see the setup was there all alog, even if it felt random at the time. The way Millar and Scalera stuck the landing here sounds like they understood that perfectly.