Written by Brian Wood
Art by Kristian Donaldson
The Solicitation
In a post-war, post-crash, post-disaster, post-everything world, the environmental-action trawler Kapital scours the earth’s oceans for its mysteriously missing sistership, The Massive. Captain Callum Israel, a man who has dedicated his life to the ocean, now must ask himself—as our planet dies—what it means to be an environmentalist after the world’s ended. Callum and his crew will come up against pirates, rebels, murderers, and thieves as they struggle to remain noble toward their cause. Can you save a planet that's already doomed?
Preview
Why I Bought It
The comic sat on the shelf. All alone. Staring at me with eyeball shaped planet split in half with the words "The Massive" all over it. (Yes, there is a reason I described the thing as something like a thing.)
What I Liked
I liked the fact that this wasn't a comic I could just flip through. This comic really demanded my attention and wanted to bring me into the world. There was a lot of information thrown at me with this comic and I think there is still more exposition needed to really lay out what will be coming up. You can tell there is a larger plan than this one book.
What I Didn't Like
Whatever the plan is, I don't think I'm behind it.
This book wasted no time getting into the story. That works just fine, as long as you are willing to take your time and read this book and attempt to understand the characters. The first thing that tackles that idea out of my head is the art. Every face is drawn the same way, with the same jawline. Only the hair is really different. Its is a trick that I can do because it makes it easy for me to draw stuff, and I know that I suck at drawing. Story boarding, I have no issue, but drawing I just can't do. So when I notice things like that, I think that the framing of the panel will be handled with care, but there are going to be times I just think that everyone is staring at each other, mouths unable to part.
Exposition, scene, exposition, scene. That is the general layout of the book. At the end of it, I really didn't think that I left fully knowing or understanding what these characters were doing or where they were heading. I got the feelings of some liberal, hippie kinda feel for them, but that's about it.
This is, quite frankly, a book that shouldn't be on its own. It needs the trade, which is how I usually like to read Brian Wood's stuff. But look at something like Northlanders, which is a simple concept and just let's the world and artist speak for themselves, to something like this that requires massive amounts of build up and exposition. And when the name The Massive is said five times in the first four panels (six if you include the title cover and the title in the book) then I just wonder why the fuck I should care. I could barely see a reason why they should.
Panel to Remember
I don't have one. Seriously, maybe the panel with the dead whales, but even that isn't given its due credit for the artist to shine. I think stiff is a word I would use to describe the art.
Quotable
"Another week of this sort of maneuvering, bridge, we'll be drifting." - sums up how I feel about this book.
Grades
Words: 6/10
Pictures: 2/10
Buy Next Issue: I'm going to have to pass. Maybe I'll pick up the next Brian Wood indy title, but no need for this one.
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