Aftershock Comics 2016
Created & Written by Frank Barbiere
Created & Illustrated by Garry Brown
Coloured by Lauren Affe
Lettered by Dave Sharpe
Reeling from the events of last issue, Martin finds himself stranded in the past with no direction. When a dangerous new foe makes his presence known, Martin will be forced to protect the very targets he swore to destroy! Can Martin stop this new opponent before reality unravels?
Just when you think you’ve something of a handle on this series Frank very nicely changes things up. After Martin doesn’t complete a mission and his father goes haywire Martin finds himself stuck in the past. I like the way this unfolds as he’s still there and the timeline hasn’t seemed to change or affect him in any way. Yes his target came to the past and is running for public office but she started a family and the guard that was nice to him in prison seems to be a descendent so naturally he couldn’t do the job. The emotional aspect of it is what’s great here.
I like that we see Martin trying to find a way to fit in and live in this time period even if it he doesn’t realise that there’s someone out there keeping an eye on him. After all the longer he’s in one time period the more he mucks up that era and changes the future and himself becomes a target. Unless this mystery person in the bandages is actually a version of himself knowing that he messed up and is there to fix things and needs to keep an eye on himself so he’s out of the way while completing the mission. Well it’s out there but this a time travel story and it’s not a far reach to jump to that conclusion.
The character growth and development here is extremely well done. It’s still the early stages in Martin’s life as a time traveler and there are still plenty of unresolved issues he has with his father. All of this being explored the way Frank’s doing it is fantastic. I find it easy to empathise with Martin and find him likeable which of course makes coming back time and again to see what he’s up that much more fun. When you can relate or like the main character the writer, in this case Frank, has done his job and created someone that has all those intangibles that make you want to follow his ongoing adventures.
Garry’s work on the interiors with Lauren are great as well. The way he’s stylised this is wonderful and the use of page layouts, angles, perspective and the all important backgrounds really help to flesh out the life he’s living and the world he’s in. I mean his apartment alone speaks volumes about this situation without the need for dialogue or narrative description. The flow of the story is fantastic and visually get a great sense of what’s happening even without the words which is great.
With each issue the events that unfold continue to explore Martin, his world and his mission in ways that both entertain and engage the reader’s mind. It’s a fun romp through a man’s journey as a hitman who needs to keep the timeline on track and it’s a strongly written and illustrated affair.