A swashbuckling space adventure with a diverse cast sure to capture comic-lovers.
A junior partner on a spaceship crew is sent on a universe-defying adventure in Visaggio’s graphic novel.
In the far-off 41st century, Vigil Virgo is the daughter of two “archaeoxenologists” who were thrown out of the scientific research organization called “the Intelligence” when they discovered now-lost evidence that their universe was constructed and abandoned by an extradimensional civilization. After their disappearance into the night following their expulsion, Vigil has mostly been raised by their longtime friend Odysseus Rex. Vigil is determined to not follow in her parents’ heretical footsteps (“my parents were crackpots”), but after being denied her research subject by the Intelligence, she decides to join Odysseus’ spaceship crew as junior partner. The partnership works well until they come across a mysterious artifact they refer to as “the sarcophagus.” Initially unable to glean any information from the strange black box, when Vigil discovers a map hidden within its depths after an unexpected and up-close encounter, she’ll do anything to discover the secrets of the universe that those coordinates offer—even if she’ll never be the same after. Oeming’s illustrations are lively and expressive, with page layouts that keep the eye moving inexorably onward. Some scene transitions are too fast-paced to follow––Vigil’s first encounter with the sarcophagus abruptly cuts from her arm being subsumed by the mass to a newly introduced character with little setup––and the flashbacks can be confusing as the reader tries to figure out when or where the characters are. The eventual introduction of alternate versions of the cast charting different paths becomes harder to parse as the narrative progresses. While Visaggio’s dialogue is bursting with character, it doesn’t make up for the opaqueness of the story and the confusing twists and turns taken by the plot. However, Soma’s use of color is a great addition to the art and text, signaling changes in mood, amplifying certain emotional beats, and serving as a subtle indication for changes in time or place. This is an SF adventure that starts off with a bang and ends with a head-scratch—hopefully, subsequent volumes will answer more questions.
A swashbuckling space adventure with a diverse cast sure to capture comic-lovers.Pub Date: Jan. 21, 2025
ISBN: 9781545815878
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Mad Cave Studios
Review Posted Online: Nov. 26, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Lush visuals bring this thoughtfully constructed tale to life.
Wondrous visitors encounter a desperate pocket of humanity.
Lori, a white orphaned teen who’s finally been adopted after bouncing around various foster homes, awakens to discover that nearly everyone has disappeared. The rapture? Maybe. She runs into her classmate Annette, who has brown skin and curly black hair, and they partner up to scavenge for food. The pair tries to evade several threats, such as the large Wolves and a gang called The Dogs. Supernatural Giants arrive, seemingly from space, speaking an impenetrable language of “musical chiming and weird bass-rhythms.” Lori and Annette then meet Beatrice, an older white woman who shares important observations about the Giants and Wolves. The tone of the story then subtly shifts from post-apocalyptic desperation to one that’s somewhat playful. After a certain point, a visual element that appears early on takes on clear significance and meaning in the context of the story at large, offering a subversively humorous twist for readers to consider and a creative element that deviates from other alien invasion narratives. Hans’ artwork and paneling fill each scene with wonders. An interaction with a giant sees the red, violet, and pink figure standing against a bright, otherworldly white-and-blue backdrop with dark contours. Elsewhere, Lori and Annette pause at night as they behold ominous shadows, their foggy breath forming clouds, and they hear a “KRRNCH” sound. The quick-moving plot wraps everything up neatly.
Lush visuals bring this thoughtfully constructed tale to life. (character designs) (Graphic science fiction. 14-adult)Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2024
ISBN: 9781534387072
Page Count: 104
Publisher: Image Comics
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2024
Using modern language, McDonald spins the well-known tale of the two young, unrequited lovers. Set against Nagar’s at-times...
A bland, uninspired graphic adaptation of the Bard’s renowned love story.
Using modern language, McDonald spins the well-known tale of the two young, unrequited lovers. Set against Nagar’s at-times oddly psychedelic-tinged backgrounds of cool blues and purples, the mood is strange, and the overall ambiance of the story markedly absent. Appealing to what could only be a high-interest/low–reading level audience, McDonald falls short of the mark. He explains a scene in an open-air tavern with a footnote—“a place where people gather to drink”—but he declines to offer definitions for more difficult words, such as “dirges.” While the adaptation does follow the foundation of the play, the contemporary language offers nothing; cringeworthy lines include Benvolio saying to Romeo at the party where he first meets Juliet, “Let’s go. It’s best to leave now, while the party’s in full swing.” Nagar’s faces swirl between dishwater and grotesque, adding another layer of lost passion in a story that should boil with romantic intensity. Each page number is enclosed in a little red heart; while the object of this little nuance is obvious, it’s also unpleasantly saccharine. Notes after the story include such edifying tidbits about Taylor Swift and “ ‘Wow’ dialogs from the play” (which culls out the famous quotes).Pub Date: May 10, 2011
ISBN: 978-93-80028-58-3
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Campfire
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2011
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