Thunderbolts #133 Writer: Andy Diggle / Artist: Miguel Sepulveda

This issue is your typical first chapter to a story. We get a few glimpses of a problem beginning to develop for Norman Osborn and then we get a crazy tease for the final page. Everything about this issue is run-of-the-mill except for some interesting character work.

First and foremost, Songbird finally decides to make her presence known in this arc. She's been laying low trying to avoid being seen by Osborn ever since her former team was sent to kill her. Apparently she's tired of his Dark Reign and goes after him. I always liked Songbird. She was the only legitimate member of her team and paid a hefty price for her heroics. I can't wait to see her take on these new, highly organized Thunderbolts.

Andy Diggle further characterizes some of the team with this issue. I enjoyed Ant Man's little heart-to-heart with Paladin. It reiterated that this team isn't motivated by honor or justice, but fear and money. Ghost and Black Widow also had a little honest chat. The mystique is about Ghost is endearing and entertaining. I don't like Widow's new double agent status though. The last team had an honorable character, I don't think this team needs one too. She works better as the bad girl with zero tolerance for insubordination.

An interesting thing about this issue is the addition of another teammate. It seems that Osborn is stacking this team with as many D-listers as possible. They just got a new member last issue and we barely know some of the characters as is. This new guy seems to be someone we already know though. Maybe his reveal will be worth the hassle of trying to figure out someone else on the team.

Roberto de la Torre is absent from the art and the issue suffers a little bit for it. Miguel Sepulveda does good job creating a dark and mysterious atmosphere, however, his characters are somewhat bland. Maybe it's the fault of the colorist, but everyone looks like a sprite inserted onto the background instead of within it. The art wasn't distracting, just a step down from previous issues.

Overall, Thunderbolts #133 wasn't anything great nor terrible. It was a very ordinary issue. Even the tease was a little typical. Most people will probably be able to guess what's going on just by reading this review. Still, I think the idea of this new team going up against Songbird has promise and I look forward to seeing where it goes.