Crimson Scorpion #1
Antarctic Press 2020
Written by David Furr
Illustrated by Joseph Olesco
Coloured by Shannon and Gerilou Smith
After assisting the U.S. Special Forces to take down an ISIS cell in Egypt, Professor Samuel Kocian has returned home to find himself mysteriously transformed into the Crimson Scorpion, a hero with powers the professor neither understands nor can control. And he is not the only one to return with newfound abilities. The ISIS commander survived the attack in Egypt and has developed powers even stronger than the professor's. His one goal now is to kill Professor Kocian before he can fully become the Crimson Scorpion!
I have to admit that this really is one of the more interesting creations that has come out of Antarctic Press' Anthology book. It has that ring about it that sounds familiar and yet can encompass a whole lot more than it has been in my humble opinion. After All when you think about it the sands of Egypt hold a rich history from times when curses and magic were seen as an everyday reality, so why aren't we seeing a lot more heroes and villains emerging from their depths? Thus far I have to hand it to this creative team because this is some notch super-hero antics and sensational character find for 2020!
I am really enjoying the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented extremely well. The back and forth between Sam and Nadim has been exceptionally done and it really is quite interesting to see how one is adapting to their new reality faster than the other. Which leads directly into the character development we are seeing here. I like how we see Sam and how this new training and life he has and to see all of the characters act and react to the situations and circumstances continues to shape who they are. The pacing is great and as it takes us through the pages revealing the twists and turns along the way helps creates the books calm and chaotic ebb & flow.
This is one of those books where I keep telling you that you need to branch out from your comfort zone. Antarctic Press is quietly, well I do keep telling y'all, putting out some smart, dynamic and incredible super-hero books. The quality and level of the storytelling from the writing through the interiors down to the lettering is so gosh darn impressive.
The linework that we see here shows a strong and steady hand. The way we see the varying weights utilised to create the attention to detail that we see is really quite nice. I do like the way we see backgrounds being utilised as they are here. How they work within the composition of the panels and bring this really nice depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the book is stupendous. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show this superb eye for storytelling. The colour we see here is really beautifully rendered. I like how we see the various hues and tones within the colours utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work. Plus there is some nice gradation as well as colour blocking or thanks to that tail, the blurred effect.
This is a great book and I am so happy to see that it has gotten it's one title. This more than deserves to be part of a new franchise for Antarctic Press and hopefully maybe work it's way into a shared universe with Punchline. Stranger things have happened. Still this is a great time, during the stay at home portion of the year, to check out these books that might not have otherwise done.
Antarctic Press 2020
Written by David Furr
Illustrated by Joseph Olesco
Coloured by Shannon and Gerilou Smith
After assisting the U.S. Special Forces to take down an ISIS cell in Egypt, Professor Samuel Kocian has returned home to find himself mysteriously transformed into the Crimson Scorpion, a hero with powers the professor neither understands nor can control. And he is not the only one to return with newfound abilities. The ISIS commander survived the attack in Egypt and has developed powers even stronger than the professor's. His one goal now is to kill Professor Kocian before he can fully become the Crimson Scorpion!
I have to admit that this really is one of the more interesting creations that has come out of Antarctic Press' Anthology book. It has that ring about it that sounds familiar and yet can encompass a whole lot more than it has been in my humble opinion. After All when you think about it the sands of Egypt hold a rich history from times when curses and magic were seen as an everyday reality, so why aren't we seeing a lot more heroes and villains emerging from their depths? Thus far I have to hand it to this creative team because this is some notch super-hero antics and sensational character find for 2020!
I am really enjoying the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented extremely well. The back and forth between Sam and Nadim has been exceptionally done and it really is quite interesting to see how one is adapting to their new reality faster than the other. Which leads directly into the character development we are seeing here. I like how we see Sam and how this new training and life he has and to see all of the characters act and react to the situations and circumstances continues to shape who they are. The pacing is great and as it takes us through the pages revealing the twists and turns along the way helps creates the books calm and chaotic ebb & flow.
This is one of those books where I keep telling you that you need to branch out from your comfort zone. Antarctic Press is quietly, well I do keep telling y'all, putting out some smart, dynamic and incredible super-hero books. The quality and level of the storytelling from the writing through the interiors down to the lettering is so gosh darn impressive.
The linework that we see here shows a strong and steady hand. The way we see the varying weights utilised to create the attention to detail that we see is really quite nice. I do like the way we see backgrounds being utilised as they are here. How they work within the composition of the panels and bring this really nice depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the book is stupendous. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show this superb eye for storytelling. The colour we see here is really beautifully rendered. I like how we see the various hues and tones within the colours utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work. Plus there is some nice gradation as well as colour blocking or thanks to that tail, the blurred effect.
This is a great book and I am so happy to see that it has gotten it's one title. This more than deserves to be part of a new franchise for Antarctic Press and hopefully maybe work it's way into a shared universe with Punchline. Stranger things have happened. Still this is a great time, during the stay at home portion of the year, to check out these books that might not have otherwise done.
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