The synths of Steel Team are mostly gone, as are the humans they were sent to rescue. A child remains, but he’s been essentially handed to the xenomorphs by Eli, one of the last members of Steel Team. Yet the other synth – Freyja – is determined to save the kid; to prove once and for all that she’s nothing like the callous humans who designed and used her for so long.

Unfortunately, Julius Ohta’s art really does make many of the action scenes very difficult to follow; the same problem has plagued the previous few issues too. Given that much of this issue’s page count is action focused, it’s a real problem.

Phillip Kennedy Johnson’s writing is much better here than it’s been for a while though; it’s almost a shame that this is his last issue before the series is rebooted (for the second time already!).

Despite my complaints of a spoiler on the cover, the Alpha barely even makes it into this issue; it’s a weird choice for a cover image and doesn’t do the story any favours.

We’re heading into completely unknown territory as of the next issue one, with an entirely new creative team; hopefully, issues with the art and the inconsistency in the writing and its pacing will finally be addressed.

The Alien universe deserves better; though it may be asking too much for a return to the heyday of mid-90s Dark Horse Alien comics – when they truly hit their stride, with incredibly creative and often truly disturbing work – it’d be nice to see the series go beyond its overly familiar tropes and themes.