Lion Forge 2019
Written by Gail Simone
Pencilled by José Luis
Inked by Jonas Trindade
Coloured by Michelle Madsen
Lettered by Saida Temofonte
DAY FIVE:
With the world going to hell in a hand basket a new hero emerges to help with the growing chaos. But heroes can't stop people from leaving their jobs, posts at the border and choosing to spend time with their families instead. The world is ending after all, and how are you going to spend it?
I remember just turning 15 when the first issue of Crisis on Infinite Earths came out. That entire year I was enthralled and captivated by such a grandiose idea and how Marv and George were executing it. Unfortunately ever since both DC and Marvel have been trying to capture lightning in a bottle trying to replicate that with bigger and bigger events every year. Part of what made that special was its uniqueness. For the first time since I was 15 years old I feel that way when I see an issue of this hitting stands. I get that wide-eyed sense of wonder and thrill by what is within these pages. Gail has turned a massive event into something done in a way that is both modern and harkens back to the days when comics made you genuinely feel excited for their release.
I love the way that this is being told. The opening sums up why in a nutshell though it is unfortunate that an event such as this should occur for what we see happening happen. It is bad enough that Rebecca is having this happen to her but the scarier thing about it is how this nutter obtained her address. The second opening as it were is one that picks up where the events left off with the Incidentals. Who now have to deal with the intrusion of Lorena as well as Camila. Now let's talk about Lorena for a minute, I understand a universe like this needs a bad guy à la manière de Lex Luthor but seriously this woman needs to be toned down immensely. To talk to her lover the way she does here and how she takes it upon herself to be judge, jury and executioner of the world at large puts her in a category that frankly makes me not want to see her at all, in any book.
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 character development is strong stuff and while I hate focusing on her the others aren't as fleshed out as she is and I would really like to see more of the kids. The introduction of a new character though has me excited. The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing the twists and turns along the way it helps to create the ebb & flow for the book.
The interiors showcase some absolutely amazing work. The pencils and the inks are so seamless they feel like one person did it all and that's some hella good talent on display right there. The way we see the varying weights being utilised to showcase the attention to detail at such a high level and quality mind blowing. The composition inside the panels while lacking in backgrounds do have enough to bring depth perception, scale and that overall sense of size and scope. When we do see backgrounds they are utilised so perfectly that it makes their absence that much more noticeable. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a marvellous eye for storytelling. The colour work is brilliantly rendered. The choice of colours and how we see the gradation in them to create some unusual combinations is delightful. How we see the various hues and tones within the colours to create the shading, highlights and shadow work is done with aplomb. I love that we see a colourist who understands how colour works, how it can be utilised to it's fullest and isn't afraid of the different techniques to bring it all to life.
This is why the future of comics is bright. When creators are able to utilise their talents and bring us this level and quality of work, we fans will flock to it in droves. I hold Gail in high regard and she's in the midst of a decorated career but this, this outdoes and outshines everything she's done to date and the artistic team yeah they are just as inspired.