3 out of 5

Okay, so when’s Grant coming back?  I’ve been on the fence about 18 Days since its announcement – that it’s a vanity project, that it’s a new publisher tossing a big name on a book for attention – despite the title’s roots with Morrison several years before the Graphic India imprint on which it’s now appearing, but he managed to keep me on the greener-grass side of the fence with “the first day” of the war over the series’ initial five issues.  Because, yes, UK obsession with Indian mysticism, but filtered through Grant’s big and bold storytelling.  He made a massive story feel appropriately massive.  For ‘day two’ – which is actually hilariously compressed to issue 9, with issues 6, 7 and 8 doing the flashback trot to fill in some blanks (which didn’t necessarily need filling yet) as to how our characters came to be where they are – Grant has completely stepped back to a ‘created by’ credit only, with various Graphic India scripters taking the reins.  And the writing is by no means bad, but we’ve lost all of that big picture futurism Morrison brought to the table; we’re now just reading the story of this war, and there just happen to be spaceships in the background.  Jeevan J. Kang and Francesco Biagini’s art is fairly bland as-is, and stripped of any Grant panel directions, it’s not gained any traction.  Thus: art is not detracting from the story, and competently illustrates what’s happening, but t’ain’t nothin’ fancy.

The lack of scope in these issues does make it feel like a series of fill-ins, so we’ll hang around for day three to see if Grant reappears.  And perhaps that will be an acceptable compromise: our series’ creator popping in and out until the 18 Days are told.  But if that’s not the case, I’m not too sure the rest of the team has the oomph needed to keep this title going.