Let’s pretend we are a new reader of Dead Seas, from IDW. Now that we have come aboard issue 4, does the plot stay level, and can we fathom what’s up? or are we All Shook Up?
Writer Cavan Scott has plunged us, the new reader, into the deep sea, where on the surface, the dark night clouds surround a large tanker ship, hull broken in the middle, sinking. We have a bad feeling about this, naturally. And so do all the passengers and crew. Convicts and guards on the ship are ‘all in the same boat’, so to speak, and in addition, on page two, we know there are ghosts onboard too.
In the midst of the capsizing, two women, Captain Francisca Espinosa and Lia are at loggerheads, quarreling. From there, during the incredibly slow sinking of the ship, other dramatic episodes take place. People below deck are in disagreement on what to do next. The result is a buffet of spiritual encounters, illogical and incredible ‘happenings’, and large ‘holds’ chock full of shock and awe.
Among the seaweed, flotsam, and starboard constellations, the drama remains high, and artist Nick Brokenshire uses a fine line to imbues the plot with clever panels and hostile expressions. The renderings of the capsizing are well crafted. Brokenshire’s use of colour, light, and shadow help us to ascertain what is important. The vivid art certainly pumps ballast to help keep this oddly structured issue afloat as long as possible. Saints preserve us! Lettering by Shawn Lee, Editor Chase Marotz.
IDW, Dead Seas #4, $3.99 for 25 pages of content.
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