News From the Fallout #2 // Review
Some guys just come into the diner. He's got a gas mask in one hand and he's got a gun in the other. And he's shouting. He's being real firm about it. Doesn't necessarily sound like a madman or anything like that. But it doesn't necessarily sound same either. And it's not like anyone's really going to trust him. He does claim to be from the government after all. Or at least the military. But there's a real serious threat that's just down the road and they really need to listen in News From the Fallout #2. Writer Chris Condon and artist Jeffrey Alan Love follow up a very compelling first issue of a horror drama with further drama that’s every bit as stylish as the opening issue.
He’s not trying to scare them or anything. He’s just telling them that they are going to need to act quickly because there’s a very serious threat coming. They aren't exactly moving. They aren't exactly the type of people who had to move quickly when authority comes by and tells them what to do. However, it's not like they're not listening to him. They are, after all, listening to him. They are, after all, discussing whether or not he might actually know what he's doing. And that may be enough. But it might not be quick enough.
Condon open the issue with a very earthbound sort of conversation about things that echo into the abstract. And their questions about how people process the concept of authority. However, in a very immediate sense they are very much grounded in the horror genre. And so it's fun watching it play out. Because as simple as it all is, it's actually crafted in a way that is intended to be very provocative. There's a lot of deeper issues being explored in what is a very simple conversation between stranger. It’s deceptively simple with an unexpected depth. Condon’s really got something here.
Love’s art is interesting and atmospheric. It also takes a hell of a lot of guts. The graininess of the background. The fact that it all plays out in silhouette more or less. The intensity of that could easily get lost. Or it could feel very heavy handed. Not modular enough. Not modulated enough. But there's quite a bit of nuance in the drama, even though it's all just basically a whole bunch of silhouettes arguing. Feels a lot like watching surveillance camera footage from the end of the world or something like that. Except that you're hearing the dialogue very vividly. It feels very sharp. The visual reality of it all feels quite well defined.
With the pacing being what it is, it's kind of difficult to tell whether or not it's going to resolve into something meaningful by the end of the series. As it is, the first two issues really feel like they're going somewhere. It's just kind of difficult to tell whether or not that's going to mean much once the final panel is reached. As it is, it just feels like it's going to be a lot of fun getting there.
