Cosmic Roots Studio 2019
Created, Written & Coloured by Wes Hartman
Illustrated by Gab Santos
Colour Assists by Robert Bevard
Issue 2 continues the rocket fueled sci-fi action adventure comic about the legendary bigfoot in space!
Join him as he raids a spaceport of the largest intergalactic super power, the Aurellian Empire, after his successful prison break and hijacking of the maniacal Empress' new flagship. Can Sasquanaut and his new crew keep it together long enough to escape? Will their lives be decided by a fateful game of arm wrestling?
This is is one of those absolutely surprise gems that you wonder why this isn't more mainstream than it is. The writing here is pretty damn impeccable and I have to say from that standpoint alone this is worth more than it's weight in gold, or hand sanitiser. The way that we see the dialogue between the characters and the direction that leads them is so damn well incorporated into the the overall story & plot development is stunning work. The overall impression we get from this is utterly amazing and it feels like it should be one of those shows that starts on the SyFy channel and ends up on Netflix or Amazon Prime.
The way that this is being told is bloody brilliant. The story & development that we see here through how the sequence of events unfold and how the reader learns information is presented to the reader so perfectly. There is something about seeing the characters interact with one another and the language they use in the banter that causes the reader to look for the meaning behind what is being said. It has the feel of real life, when strangers are becoming friends and you don't know how to express that but you can see it, feel it and understand it in the way they communicate. All of this ties into the character development in ways that truly phenomenal. Seeing them grow, change and evolve as the story progresses through the circumstances and situations they encounter show more and more with each turn of the page. The pacing is bloody superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing the twists and turns along the way help show how everything works together to create the books structure and highlight the way this is structured.
The interiors here are so freaking phenomenal. I love the linework we see and how the varying weights being utilised to showcase the attention to detail. We aren't just talking about the characters here either because the backgrounds and the alien species as well as the buildings and this city require some flabbergasting creativity and imagination to bring to life. The talent and skill we see here is mindbogglingly extremely good. How we see the backgrounds utilised within the panels to show us this great depth perception, sense of scale as well as the overall sense of size and scope to the story is really jaw-dropping. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a masterful eye for storytelling. The colour work is divine and I love the way that we see all the various hues and tones within the colours utilised to create shading, highlights and shadow work. Also the the choice of who and what were which colour was absolutely inspired.
I love that we have a Cryptid in Sasquatch sent into outer space only to find those who he ultimately really does belong with. That feeling of belonging, acceptance and being a part of something, almost like a family is what we all want and here we see the beginning of just that. This is a bloody brilliant book, story and it's one that the entire world should be reading this.