REVIEW: Cannons In The Clouds #4

It’s hard to review issue 4 of this series without a small recap. For those who have been on board since the start feel free to jump to the next paragraph. Â Cannons is yet another story of yet another devastated future (alluded to in the guise of the series defacto religion) the heroine of which is yet another plucky teen. Â This time around, the heroine is young Sela Windbourne, daughter of the local townships governor / mayor. Â From her elevated position in society, she sees fit to debunk her elders at every turn leading her to run away from home and starting yet another teen journey to discovery and destiny.

Issue 4 starts at a bit of a segway, moving from the previous cliff-hanger. The art has a certain Disney-esque appeal with Sela looking like she would fit quite nicely into Aladdin. This is then my main concern; the book looks like a Disney film, with humorous set pieces (not another bush brought a smile) and stereotypical bad guys who look like bad guys down to their misshapen noses.

Regarding the art, the main characters are drawn well with clear lines for the most part. However, backgrounds do tend to lack detail and I almost missed a paper, rock scissor contest, which could have been played for bigger laughs. This coupled with heavy inks towards the end of the issue serve to distract rather than emphasise. The action scenes also seem a little flat especially with the Indiana Jones element. Â The script is full of believable dialogue, with the simple story track again reminding me of Disney.

This book, whilst not aimed at me; the young adults tag may also seem a tad of Â an over reach; has a certain charm which may well fit with the crowd who enjoyed the previous books and films from which Cannons clearly takes its inspiration.

Story Â by Daniel Wooley and Anne Gresham
Art by Jorge Donis and Kristy Swan
Letters by Peter Simeti
Publisher: Alterna Comics
Overall 3*
Story 3*
Art 2.5

[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]

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