Publisher: Image Comics
Story By: Ed Brubaker
Art By: Steve Epting, Elizabeth Breitweiser
Release Date: 3rd February, 2016

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It has been four long months, but finally we can pick up where we left Ms. Templeton as we continue story arc of ‘The Man Who Stole The World’. If you cast your mind back, Velvet was working X-23’s old fling, Rachel Tanner, to find out what happened during the missing hours. Now down on her luck and working as a cocktail waitress Rachel is cornered by Velvet at work, only to notice Damian Lake out the corner of her eye.. and realising he’s tracked her down too..

Memory suitably refreshed? Good, let us continue.

Yes, it’s been a while since issue #12, but Ed Brubaker did promise at the end of that issue that things will be heating up for Velvet. I can tell you this was not lies. This issue is all about the action, glorious, funky, retro, 70’s spy action in all its bakelite and spy-gadget gloriousness.

The issue swivels around four characters: Velvet, Damien Lake, Rachel Tanner, and Max, but actually only covers perhaps 10 minutes of real time. The saying “Worlds are created and destroyed in the blinking of an eye,” seems fitting here. It’s where things begin to go wrong for Velvet, and the first time we see the spy game catch up with her; she genuinely doesn’t know what is going on. Or who she can trust. The construction of the issue catapults Velvet from one decision to the next, always questioning what is happening, and what the end game might be. It’s probably the first time we see her get desperate and rattled, and all played out in a finite timeline. You have to admire the beauty of it.

The 70’s is a time tailor-made for spy thrillers, and Steve Epting is a master at drawing this. Trenchcoats, awful furniture, Pontiacs, and bad moustaches are everywhere in their period gloriousness. Long horizontal frames contain narrative and story elements, but when it comes to chase and action sequences everything moves to the diagonal. It’s a simple trick, but one that adds the sense of speed and movement to the scene. The icing on the cake (for me) is his use of shadow. Keeping with the theme of concealment there is no real gradient in the shadows, the blacks are deep, and yet add a brilliant definition to the character faces.

Elizabeth Breitweiser colours keep with the period and all that fantastically kitsch formaldehyde furnishing. What I particularly enjoyed is the use of ink-stain style blacks to enhance the shadows and reflections of the rained on city. Both Eptings lines and Breitweisers choice of colour give a deep rooted and fitting thriller noir feel to the story and the city.

I can almost forgive the four month wait for this issue, it has absolutely stepped up a gear as promised. It’s also interesting and new seeing Velvet flap in indecision, and the issue ends in a stunning twist/reveal. It’s been too long, Ms Templeton, I’m glad you’re back.

Rating: 4/5.

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The writer of this piece was: Andrew McGlinn
Andrew Tweets from @Jockdoom.

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