This latest homegrown manga effort focuses on a group of genetically engineered psychic commandos, or Psy-Comms, all of whom are the assembly-line-pretty sort one has come to expect from this genre. Precog Mark and shape-shifter David survive a mission that kills Raven, their teammate and Mark's lover. They are then assigned to travel behind enemy lines and assassinate the scientist who is masterminding the creation of a rival force of young soldiers, each armed with a startling array of paranormal abilities. When the assassination is discovered, the two Psy-Comms must escape from the enemy barracks and contend with the bloodthirsty horde of young soldiers who seek to avenge their "father." Things take an unexpected turn when Mark saves the life of Snow, an enemy soldier who resembles his dead lover, and the two must fend for themselves while their own opposing factions seek to hunt them down like mad dogs. Traveling well-worn youth-with-superpowers territory covered in the various X-Men titles for the past 25 years, this series is competently drawn and moves at a brisk pace, but acts mostly as a setup for future volumes. (Dec.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Gr 7 Up–This is an ambitious beginning to a new series with a plot that is both timely and plausible. The story takes place in the future–a time when wars are fought not for territory, power, or greed, but for mere entertainment. In an era when reality TV seems to be the rage, this theme seems strikingly relevant. Mark Leit, a young commando, is one of the heroes of the televised war; he is a stereotypical gung-ho soldier at the start of the book, but he takes on real dimension when a reminder from his past makes him begin to question why hes fighting. The art is lively, reminiscent of old GI Joe comics, and captures emotion well; the story is full of battle scenes, and the illustrations portray the action well. However, little time is spent addressing how and why the war is started, and how the soldiers are convinced to continue fighting. These questions leave plenty of fodder for the forthcoming books.–Scott La Counte, Anaheim Public Library, CA Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information