Review: Giga #2

Don’t you just hate when the “you were there, so you must have done it” police reasoning comes into effect. Circumstantial, yes, but it is always easier to jump to conclusions than to put in the leg work.

Ethan has returned to the dead Giga, for good reason, but in doing so is now in the frame for a murder. All the while, he best friend, an illegal robot, is deteriorating. With more problems starting to leak into his world, Ethan may need the help of those he was forced to leave behind if he is ever going to find the real killer, no matter how high the conspiracy goes.

I have been a fan of writer/creator Alex Paknadel for quite sometime. He has the knack of challenging a world view with sleight of hand intricacies that sit right in the middle of your brain. Here, with Giga’s in place of gods, a religious regime instead of a political one, Ethan kinds of acts as an “everyman” proxy in some light. True at one point he could have been one of the flock, but happenstance and a creative mind kind of spoiled that plan. Paknadel expects a lot from the reader; the pace of the book never lets up and the dialogue is a mix of a recognisable world intermixed with a metaphorical one. Still, at the heart of this storm is the human relationship between Ethan and Legs, which has a charm.

The art is provided by John Le has an almost Monty Python level of surrealism to it. I guess that is due in part to the mix of the future and a more sedate traditional world. For a style that isn’t my first choice, I found Le’s work engaging with touches of Chris Burnham influences. The backgrounds are heavily detailed at times, so looking at the book will take some time. Panel layouts have a smaller than you would expect, but suits the more claustrophobic elements, both from Ethan’s actual life and the pressures that are being placed upon it. Colors are provided by Rosh who textures the world in hues of orange, red and patches of purple. The world looks great. Finally, Aditya Bidikar provides a font that is easy to read, which is a treat considering how condensed some of the action in the book can be.

This is a great read on many levels; a stand in part against the idea of blindly following something, entwined through the life of Ethan and his continued railing against the establishment.

Writing – 5 Stars
Art – 5 Stars
Colors – 5 Stars

[yasr_overall_rating]

Written by; Alex Paknadel
Art by; John Le
Colors by; Rosh
Letters by; Aditya Bidikar
Published by; Vault Comics

Author Profile

Johnny "The Machine" Hughes

I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow

Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network