MD GEIST: GROUND ZERO is a prequel to the anime film. Geist is an experimental genetically enhanced super-warrior. Earth Government's military hopes to use him and others like him to put down a colonial rebellion on planet Jerra. If you've seen the MD Geist film you know that things don't end up quite so neat and tidy.
The story is quite entertaining and would probably make a great video. But three slim comic books are not enough space for the potential of such drama. So you would need great artwork to make up for that...
This trilogy doesn't have great artwork, at least not generally. I say not generally because there are little flashes of brilliance here and there, but they're not usually where they're supposed to be. For instance, I should not be looking at how beautifully the sunrise is colored nor how subtle its starburst effect is. I should be drawn to the shining form of Colonel Stanton standing below it in full battle dress.
The vehicles are cool and look complicated enough, but the FIGHTEX Armor suits that the good guys wear are, well... boring. They don't look very dangerous. Mostly harmless, even. But perhaps this is fitting since Geist doesn't even use one until the end of the third issue. He even destroys an enemy cyborg mecha with nothing but a rifle and some fatigues, as super-human genetically enhanced heroes are wont to do.
Which brings me to another disappointment. We don't get to see that fight, just Geist standing over a pile of wreckage that must've been fun to create. Often we simply see Geist jump onto something, jump off, and lo it is dead.
Still, the non-lethal character interactions are very interesting. Geist is hated and feared by most around him, but he fights for them anyway. He is a cold and ruthless killer by any measure, but his sense of duty is literally hard-wired into him, giving him a stoic nobility. It is this trait that both seals his fate and preserves him for the anime film.
Near the end there is also a moving, testosterone-laced passing of the torch/armor between Geist and his most vocal detractor, Colonel Stanton. The symbolism of that shining white knight's armor turning black, covered in the hydraulic fluids of a defeated enemy, before being passed on to Geist is actually quite good. (And the FIGHTEX Armor suits look so much better in black! I can't help but wonder if this series wouldn't have looked better in black and white...)
So the series is a good read, especially if you've ever wondered where Most Dangerous Soldiers come from. But I don't think you'll love it for its artwork.

--Peter Cahill