John Carpenter’s Tales of Science Fiction: The Standoff #2
Storm King Comics 2018
Written by David J. Schow
Illustrated by Andres Esparza
Coloured by Sergio Martinez
Lettered by Janice Chiang
A GIGANTIC UFO HAS CRASHED INTO TATTERSALL PRISON. Officials try to contain the perimeter, but the inmates want out...And the invaders want IN--into the inmates! Hostages are taken. Bodies are possessed. Alien bugs infect anyone they can. Inside--chaos. Outside--chaos. And all around...A TOTAL AND COMPLETE STANDOFF.
I am a sucker for science fiction, have been my entire life and it’s one of the things that my father gave to me that we could bond over. When I was 10 years old I saw Alien, at home on VHS, after that day my love of horror inside the genre was cemented. After that I couldn’t get enough and I loved how science and horror go hand in hand regardless of the premise behind it. What Storm King does is bring the concept back to life in a visual storytelling format and they do it extremely well. The idea that an alien craft would crash land into a prison where bugs that kind of resemble wasps or hornets are let loose and change people.
Last issue introduced us to this fantastic premise. I loved that the inmates who think they are gods among men think their demands will be met after killing a few guards. That they are so seemingly simple minded and well single minded men they show off the fact that they should be in prison as they have committed heinous acts and don’t have the intelligence to remain free. They are however a superb catalyst to be used by these little flying alien creatures. The writing that David does, the characterisation he’s able to bring us is utterly amazing and it continues to develop, change and grow leaving me excited to see what certain characters will do next.
The way that this book is structured is sensational. From the opening which is mesmerising in it’s approach to the last page it has that cinematic quality about it where the flow builds and recedes in ways that make the journey that much more interesting, impressive and desirable to see. So to open with Shoots, again, makes sense and to see him and learn more about him while gaining no real knowledge of him was brilliantly done. The combination of his narration and the artwork made this one of the strongest and strangest starting points ever.
Good Morning Vietnam the interiors here are beyond what I could hope for. The level of detail and the attention paid to the most minute of things really does make this book pop like you wouldn’t believe. Seriously I could drift through this book without reading a word and just taking in the imagery. It isn’t just the manipulation of the linework to create these gorgeous subtle moments or the boldness of the heavier linework no it’s also about the colours. How we see the light sources illuminate people, places and such, the shading or gradation of colour that we see is what really brings that artwork to life in that believable kind of way. The utilisation of page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels, alongside the way backgrounds are utilised show such an incredibly amazing eye for storytelling.
Secret Government organisations who can call upon anyone they need and then having to call an even more secret group for help while trying to maintain and secure the situation at hand isn’t an easy thing to do. Even for Agent Farris who well thinks she has cajoness and that uber-bitch front she projects isn’t immune to failing or admitting to needing help. So how many cooks will spoil this broth and will those assembled be able to contain the situation before all hell breaks loose, even further? I can’t wait to find out.
Storm King Comics 2018
Written by David J. Schow
Illustrated by Andres Esparza
Coloured by Sergio Martinez
Lettered by Janice Chiang
A GIGANTIC UFO HAS CRASHED INTO TATTERSALL PRISON. Officials try to contain the perimeter, but the inmates want out...And the invaders want IN--into the inmates! Hostages are taken. Bodies are possessed. Alien bugs infect anyone they can. Inside--chaos. Outside--chaos. And all around...A TOTAL AND COMPLETE STANDOFF.
I am a sucker for science fiction, have been my entire life and it’s one of the things that my father gave to me that we could bond over. When I was 10 years old I saw Alien, at home on VHS, after that day my love of horror inside the genre was cemented. After that I couldn’t get enough and I loved how science and horror go hand in hand regardless of the premise behind it. What Storm King does is bring the concept back to life in a visual storytelling format and they do it extremely well. The idea that an alien craft would crash land into a prison where bugs that kind of resemble wasps or hornets are let loose and change people.
Last issue introduced us to this fantastic premise. I loved that the inmates who think they are gods among men think their demands will be met after killing a few guards. That they are so seemingly simple minded and well single minded men they show off the fact that they should be in prison as they have committed heinous acts and don’t have the intelligence to remain free. They are however a superb catalyst to be used by these little flying alien creatures. The writing that David does, the characterisation he’s able to bring us is utterly amazing and it continues to develop, change and grow leaving me excited to see what certain characters will do next.
The way that this book is structured is sensational. From the opening which is mesmerising in it’s approach to the last page it has that cinematic quality about it where the flow builds and recedes in ways that make the journey that much more interesting, impressive and desirable to see. So to open with Shoots, again, makes sense and to see him and learn more about him while gaining no real knowledge of him was brilliantly done. The combination of his narration and the artwork made this one of the strongest and strangest starting points ever.
Good Morning Vietnam the interiors here are beyond what I could hope for. The level of detail and the attention paid to the most minute of things really does make this book pop like you wouldn’t believe. Seriously I could drift through this book without reading a word and just taking in the imagery. It isn’t just the manipulation of the linework to create these gorgeous subtle moments or the boldness of the heavier linework no it’s also about the colours. How we see the light sources illuminate people, places and such, the shading or gradation of colour that we see is what really brings that artwork to life in that believable kind of way. The utilisation of page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels, alongside the way backgrounds are utilised show such an incredibly amazing eye for storytelling.
Secret Government organisations who can call upon anyone they need and then having to call an even more secret group for help while trying to maintain and secure the situation at hand isn’t an easy thing to do. Even for Agent Farris who well thinks she has cajoness and that uber-bitch front she projects isn’t immune to failing or admitting to needing help. So how many cooks will spoil this broth and will those assembled be able to contain the situation before all hell breaks loose, even further? I can’t wait to find out.
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