Action Lab Danger Zone 2020
Written by Dillon Gilbertson
Illustrated by Francesco Iaquinta
Coloured by Marco Pagnotta
Lettered by Saida Temofonte
In this issue, Maddie goes hunting, catches up with an old enemy, and visits a family friend. 20 years after she was first chosen by the Stringer, she’s doing everything she can to fight back against the creatures Ellicott City town has long since surrendered to.
I am such a fan of this series. Normally all this jumping around a characters timeline would be rather annoying, and while part of me still thinks that, and yet here it makes sense in a way for that to keep happening. Don’t get me wrong I'd love to see Maddie in High School trying to figure this out there and watch her as she grows up with this passion/obsession of being free of her Stringer. Sure there are things I wish were done differently but that’s a readers’ prerogative, so that I am immensely enjoying the way that this being told as is, is even more impressive because I doubt I would actually change a thing.
The way that this is being told is really rather quite good. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information keeps the story moving forward extremely well. That we do get to see what appears to be highlights of her life and the moments that mean the most the story the way we do is presented in a way that really catches your interest, engages your mind and keeps it that way. The character development is interesting. I would like to see other parts of Maddie and maybe her childhood bully might be the answer to that because an obsession is only as good as the knowledge the person has about it and it can become a little one-dimensional. The pacing is great and as it takes us through the pages revealing how Maddie and her family are dealing with this is nicely done. Also the way that this book is structured and how we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow is elegantly crafted.
This is certainly a non-traditional horror story and that it maintains the same standard from issue to issue and does so unapologetically is brilliant. This is a strong and unique concept that is delivered in a way that gives you hope, keeps surprising you and if you’re not careful it can also be devastating.
The interiors here are absolutely wonderful! The linework that we see is phenomenal and how the varying weights and techniques are utilised to bring out this gorgeous detail work is done with such a great eye. While yes I would like to see more backgrounds being utilised, I mean in the market, outside the market I feel it could use them. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a really superb, strong eye for storytelling. Also the creativity and imagination on display is so good and at times so chilling and it makes reading this that much interesting. Also can I say that he did grow up to be such a handsome man! I am impressed with the colour work that we see as well. Especially when it comes to the snow and how the whites, blues and greys are being utilised. How we see the hues and tones within the colours creating the shading, highlights and shadow work is rendered beautifully.
This is a great little series. Don’t sleep on this one, don’t be too late to the party because while you may not know a lot about Action Lab Danger Zone I am here to tell you that it is definitely a place you wanna be! This has strong, smooth writing and beautiful interiors and it’s a gripping tale so what are you waiting for?