Titan Comics 2016
Written by Serge Lehman
Penciled by Stephane Crety
Inked by Julien Hugonnard-Bert
Coloured by Gaetan Georges
Lettered by Cat Connery
Translated by Edward Gauvin
Recently returned to Paritropolis from active duty, Frank Braffort is struggling to come to terms with life as a civilian. The city he once thought of as home is now host to a bizarre outbreak of unexplained “anomalies” which appear out of nowhere. But Braffort’s background and cool head means he may not be floundering for long, as the authorities gear up to understand the phenomena they are sharing their city with once and for all!
Colour me intrigued. Frank’s role in this not so little drama keeps growing by leaps and bounds. It almost feels like Frank was kind of setup that he would run into an anomaly at that precise moment so they could see how he would react as well as see if what happened during the war repeated itself. Though seriously because of that incident have they had their eye on him all this time? If so how did they learn of it and how could they prove it, unless this was the proof they were looking for based on hearsay and rumor.
Speaking of hearsay and rumor I have to say that the way this story is structured so that I think of those things is amazingly well done. It doesn’t take that long until i’m thinking of scenarios that may or may not exist and because the writing is that good. All my conspiracy theories intensify when I see the man offering Frank a job. I love the characterisation here and the pacing of the story is equally as impressive. This really draws you in in some magnificent ways that just keeps your mind spinning.
The interiors here are utterly fantastic. The use of page layouts through angles, perspective and how backgrounds are utilised really help convey the larger picture. The attention to detail regardless of the size of the panel yeah this is the kind of work I wish more people paid attention to. Plus faces, facial expressions and body language are used to create more characterisation. The interiors not only complement but complete the story as well.
There are a couple of things that happen this issue that I was totally unprepared for and I will say seeing Frank and Mel together well it wouldn’t have hurt to see what he’s got to offer if you know what I mean. But this was great for a number of reasons and goes to explain something further if you know how to look at it. Then there was the ending and I love that we aren’t wasting any time with that happening. Again what I felt reading this at the beginning still holds true but we’re that much closer to figuring it out.
There’s an incredible blend of subterfuge, politics and heroics in this science fiction setting that is guaranteed to thrill audiences!