Tartarus #1
Image Comics 2020
Written by Johnnie Christmas
Illustrated by Jack T. Cole
Lettered by Jim Campbell
Promising young cadet Tilde is framed for crimes against the empire after discovering her mother was the ruthless warlord of the deadly colony Tartarus, a vital player in the galactic war. Now, Tilde’s only way home may be to reclaim her mother’s dark crown.
This really surprised me and I like that. While when I think of Tartarus I think of the Greek Gods and the Titans trapped there and it's become symbolic of a prison. That iteration here is well conceived and I think how the book is structured with the first half and then the second act is brilliantly done. That this didn't meet my expectations based upon the title it did exceed them with the actual story itself and I think that's the brilliance of this here. You really think one thing and get another but the idea in what you thought is actually what we get. Somehow Johnnie manages to bring us to his place and deliver a story that makes the reader feel as if they had actually thought up the idea all along. That is an impressive thing to have accomplished. On a personal note I hope the rest of this series is like this one, two tales from two perspectives leading to the same end.
I really love the way that this is being told thus far. There are a couple of times in the story when what occurs really stands out for me. What those are you'll have to ask otherwise this wouldn't be spoiler free. Suffice it to say that the impact they make on the characters and myself is big and that gives me the desire to see more. The story & plot development that we see through the sequence of events unfolding as well as how the reader learns information is impeccably, impeccably presented to us. The character development is astonishing to see play out. We know these characters, or we think we do, and to see their progression throughout their parts in this drama one cannot help but question some of the moments we see. The situations and circumstances they find themselves in is what helps us see what they are made of and what we see in their potential. The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing the twists and turns along the way it works with everything else to create this strong and captivating ebb & flow.
Oh the interiors here are utterly marvellous. There is a lot going on and the linework is exquisite as the varying weights are being utilised to showcase this level of attention to detail. It isn't just the linework though how the tattoos are seen is as important since they are pure colour with no black outline so the be able to keep that consistent is beyond impressive. I like that there aren't many blank backgrounds here, they do tend to stick out, because this is what makes me feel that they are in an enclosed space. Within the composition of the panels it highlights the depth perception, scale and that overall sense of size and scope to the story. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkable eye for storytelling. The colour work is brilliantly done here ass well. The gradation of colour or the ombre we see is really damn good and then pops of the tattoo's and such well it's just over the top in terms of quality.
This is everything you could possibly hope for and so much more. The writing is brilliant and the interiors are mindbogglingly good so there's no reason for passing this one up.
Image Comics 2020
Written by Johnnie Christmas
Illustrated by Jack T. Cole
Lettered by Jim Campbell
Promising young cadet Tilde is framed for crimes against the empire after discovering her mother was the ruthless warlord of the deadly colony Tartarus, a vital player in the galactic war. Now, Tilde’s only way home may be to reclaim her mother’s dark crown.
This really surprised me and I like that. While when I think of Tartarus I think of the Greek Gods and the Titans trapped there and it's become symbolic of a prison. That iteration here is well conceived and I think how the book is structured with the first half and then the second act is brilliantly done. That this didn't meet my expectations based upon the title it did exceed them with the actual story itself and I think that's the brilliance of this here. You really think one thing and get another but the idea in what you thought is actually what we get. Somehow Johnnie manages to bring us to his place and deliver a story that makes the reader feel as if they had actually thought up the idea all along. That is an impressive thing to have accomplished. On a personal note I hope the rest of this series is like this one, two tales from two perspectives leading to the same end.
I really love the way that this is being told thus far. There are a couple of times in the story when what occurs really stands out for me. What those are you'll have to ask otherwise this wouldn't be spoiler free. Suffice it to say that the impact they make on the characters and myself is big and that gives me the desire to see more. The story & plot development that we see through the sequence of events unfolding as well as how the reader learns information is impeccably, impeccably presented to us. The character development is astonishing to see play out. We know these characters, or we think we do, and to see their progression throughout their parts in this drama one cannot help but question some of the moments we see. The situations and circumstances they find themselves in is what helps us see what they are made of and what we see in their potential. The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing the twists and turns along the way it works with everything else to create this strong and captivating ebb & flow.
Oh the interiors here are utterly marvellous. There is a lot going on and the linework is exquisite as the varying weights are being utilised to showcase this level of attention to detail. It isn't just the linework though how the tattoos are seen is as important since they are pure colour with no black outline so the be able to keep that consistent is beyond impressive. I like that there aren't many blank backgrounds here, they do tend to stick out, because this is what makes me feel that they are in an enclosed space. Within the composition of the panels it highlights the depth perception, scale and that overall sense of size and scope to the story. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkable eye for storytelling. The colour work is brilliantly done here ass well. The gradation of colour or the ombre we see is really damn good and then pops of the tattoo's and such well it's just over the top in terms of quality.
This is everything you could possibly hope for and so much more. The writing is brilliant and the interiors are mindbogglingly good so there's no reason for passing this one up.
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