Review – The Saviors #2 (Image)

Publisher: Image Comics
Writer: James Robinson
Artist: J. Bone
Release Date: 29th January 2014

Everything about this title is stark, from the monochrome palette and simplistic yet highly effective and evocative lines to the sparing use of dialogue (up to a point.)

This title covers the adventures of unreliable everyman Tomas who discovers that his sleepy desert town is overrun with indestructible shape shifting aliens.

So far, so David Icke.

Of course a desert setting playing host to an alien invasion storyline isn’t exactly original, but the desolate landscapes are beautifully drawn and contrast nicely with the otherworldly horror of the aliens hunting our hero.

There is a real ‘Old West’ feel here as we see the action through the eyes of a hapless protagonist who is educated and occasionally saved by the square-jawed stranger.

The aliens are like something Hellboy would usually fight, all blocky outlines, gaping maws and glowing eyes, and the action when they are in ‘attack mode’ is frantic and more than a bit scary.

Make no mistake, despite the genial looking hero on the cover, this is no ‘all ages’ comic and there is a terror lurking here that is more about contrast – between our doe-eyed protagonist and snarling alien monstrosity, between the black and white of the page, between the banality of the small town setting and the otherworldly conspiracy at the heart of the tale – than about gore or swearing or anything so crude.

This is like an episode of the Twilight Zone or the Outer Limits and it’s just as awesome as you remember them being.

The one flaw I’d point out would be the lengthy exposition at times – we get half this issue in silence with no dialogue and then the rest is practically a monologue of plot points, albeit backed up by some exquisite panels depicting windswept and abandoned desert scenes.

The first issue in this series had the same problem – hopefully once they stop needing to hold our hero’s (and our) hand quite so much, they’ll find a better balance.

All in, this is a very cool and even more promising title from a great writer and just as awesome artist. Check it out.