Dynamite Entertainment 2018
Written by David Avallone
Illustrated by Jordan Michael Johnson
Coloured by Valentina Pinto
Lettered by Taylor Esposito
Bettie Page has saved the world a few times now, and has earned some time off, so her boss books her a nice little vacation in Scotland, at a quiet little fishing town on the banks of…Loch Ness. What could go wrong? The legendary model comes face to face with another kind of legend, as Bettie meets Nessie in another thrilling chapter from THE SECRET DIARY OF BETTIE PAGE…
David has been doing such an amazing job on this series. That we’re getting one issue two weeks in a row is great for the reader, I'm guessing there have bee scheduling issues leading up to this so they can get back on track. So the end of last issue where Bettie was running around Elizabeth, Queen of England, McKnight sent the girls for some “rest and relaxation” in Loch Ness. It was a cute moment and the women knew what it meant and so do we. So naturally that’s where we start off here as they embark on a tour of Loch Ness.
I like the fact that these two women are getting to know one another and bonding. This little tour around the lake is a cute way for that bonding to happen and it isn’t just between the girls either as they meet Natasha and her Nana Ella. The four are the only passengers here so there’s plenty of opportunity for them all to chat. It has this ordinary everyday feel to it that and the normalcy of it is kind of charming. Of course what would this be if there weren’t going to be some sort of foul play coming and as we see things unfold I got to say David certainly knows how to ramp up that excitement level while adding a fair amount of suspense and tension.
The way this is being told through the way the book is structured is really very well done. The way information, revelations and that all important action are woven throughout shows a really mastery of skill. I am extremely impressed with the writing and how it makes the reader feel and how easy it is to connect with the characters through their words and actions. David has some mad skills and he seems to be in a position to really push himself and it’s working.
Jordan and Valentina are doing some absolutely lovely work on the interiors. One of the hardest things to do is bring ordinary people to life. They aren’t superheroes so the body types are varied and appear to be what we see every day we are out and about. That we see the ability to do this in such a way that it’s charming and brings that sense of realism to the book is perfectly done. Then there is the imagination and creativity that’s on display and the attention to detail by utilising the linework with expertise. And the colour work is brilliant! Whether it is the mountains, the ruins, the lake itself or what calls it home there is this beautiful use of colours in them. There is some nice colour gradation as well thanks to how light sources are utilised. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a strong, solid eye for storytelling.
This story is a beautiful segue into the next arc. What who and why we see the people and circumstances surrounding Bettie’s trip come to light in both this natural and incredulous way. Seeing her in her element as a model while in the ruins was a fun light-hearted touch. That David can balance that with the more serious undertones of what’s to come was extremely impressive. This series is fun, well balanced and interesting as it bring Bettie into the world of the X-Files long before things like that ever came into existence.