Alterna Comics 2018
Written by David Lucarelli
Illustrated by Henry Ponciano
Lettered by HDE
Abigail's first day proves to be a matter of life and death as she finds out that a movie studio after dark can be filled with real danger! Tinseltown is perfect for fans of crime noir stories filled with action and mystery!
When we left last issue Abigail saw a man standing on top of the water tower and the bystanders asked if she was going to do anything. That is where we pick things up here. So going into action on her first day and doing what she’s doing well it’s nice to see her getting her feet wet in a trial by fire kind of way. Though we don’t see the higher ups noting her actions we get to see them and somehow that’s enough.
I really like what David is doing here and while this is a five issue limited series the pacing for it is utterly amazing to see. It has a wonderful flow to the events we see and how they relate to Abigail and the attempts she has at furthering her career. In this era wanting to be a copper isn’t exactly typical and while she’s able to be something of a rent-a-cop for the studio it isn’t quite the same as being a part of the L.A.P.D.. Yet all of her experiences seem to be geared towards her goal and that is kind of nice to see.
The way the book is structured and how we see the whole ebb & flow is extremely well done. Also the fact that we get the characterisation here as good as we do is another factor in my enjoyment of this series. We see her as an innocent trying to become someone where that innocence is going to be lost and in any number of ways. From her social life to her professional one we are seeing her at her most innocent and working our way to a more experienced version that may or may not become jaded, time will tell on that one.
Also I do like the way that she’s an easy person to talk to and to like. She is approachable, likeable and comes across as something akin to the All-American girl. By the same token Frankie is in a mould like hers only his ambitions are much more obvious and coincide with why he’s at the studio in the first place. That she likes him, as a friend, but not that way well its very telling to say the least. A girl doesn’t like a good boy she likes a bad boy or a man depending on your point of view. She pretty much the exact opposite of Betty which is probably why they get along so well with each other. Also that contrast while not exactly Laverne and Shirley level still has all that promise of a finding a best friend.
There is something quite charming about the work done on the interiors here. It has that all-ages appeal to it and it represents the era well with the fashions and such that we see. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels is very well done and shows a solid eye for storytelling. While we don’t see backgrounds utilised as much as I would like them to be it does fit the all-ages category in that regard, still expanding the world, the moments and how we see things to draw us further in wouldn’t have been a bad thing to see. The look of Bronson Canyon and through the rest of the book is that example of what every panel should strive for.
So while Abigail works and goes out with her new beau and Betty hers things settle into a pretty nice routine. Until we start seeing some cracks and the fact that Betty hasn’t answered her door being chief among them means that there might be some tomfoolery happening here. This is one of those books that is utterly charming and holds something dark hiding in it’s shadows and that sense that this young lady is at the centre of things will test her mettle and then some. Strong writing, characterisation and lovely interiors make this a true treat.