Image Comics 2015
Written by Mark Kidwell
Illustrated by Jeff Zornow
Coloured by Jay Fotos
I’m a huge fan of Mark’s story here and that we’re getting to see Mrs. Kuen again with her grandson and the letters from Yam. There’s this really cool thing happening here with all that and it showcases how Faye can be so sweet, innocent and loving but completely hard and in control as well. She’s a tough old broad from a time when she had to be and yet was able to really hide it well by supporting her man and family.
Now i’m not entirely sure who the current government is and who controls it but there’s air support coming and they are dropping food and supplies in the infected zones. How they can blindly drop in such a highly infected area and know they are getting them is beyond me but still a relief attempt is nice to see. While that’s a nice thing to see it’s really learning about Faye and her husband that’s the real treat here.
Joe and Faye escaped to Pitt Island from the refugee camp. I like that way of thinking and they knew a man, Grady, who said it was safe. It’s an island and theoretically it should have been but then again if others who were either infected or not so scrupulous thought of the same thing. It’s the kind of excitement and fear about the unknown that drives us to see and learn more. We do wonder what happened to Joe and this is the issue that tells us his story.
On that island we get more than we bargained for. For not only do we see Faye tell of what they experienced and her emotions of it all but we see the worst both the living and dead can offer. These folks that are on the island that Faye describes to us early on with their heaping portions of meat and such during meal time bothered her but for reasons more realistic, like excess in such a hard time didn’t feel right. However what we learn makes things even more horrific about who survives a nightmare like this and what they do to those around them.
Part of me thinks at least one scene is too much like Whatever Happened to Baby Jane Hudson and for that be a part of my thinking with what Faye goes through is both horrifying and thrilling. It’s like for everything we go through there’s moments that definitely remind us of all the that’s come before and how it can all be twisted at any given moment. It’s one of the big reasons I love reading Mark’s stories because it can evoke, remind and twist the past into something for now that is hugely disturbing.
I do look forward to seeing what’s on the tape that they got from the guy on the helicopter. That should be next issues focus hopefully and then we can tie more into what happens with Jungle Jim’s over in Viet Nam. I’ve been looking forward to seeing more of this world converging learning more about everything and everyone who’s been involved thus far. With each mini-series we’ve gotten these great looks back and forth between different areas of the world but very little cohesion between them all. It’s one of the things i’ve been looking forward to and it seems Mark’s finally given us some of that.
I always getting to see a look all the different places he’s introduced us to and the myriad of wonderful characters so to see their worlds collide at least in theory is exciting.
The interiors however leave a little something to be desired. It comes off at least here as too cartoon/comic book without the detail and fear that it should emit. Some nice campy parts but the overall effect is more Saturday morning for everyone rather than hard hitting horror which this series really does need.
Still a great story and truly an epic in it’s scope and extremely worth reading.