Psy-Comm Vol. 1

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.)