Comic Review: The Many Deaths of Laila Starr #2 (BOOM! Studios)

The Many Deaths of Laila Starr #2 continues from the rebirth of Laila.

Without crowing about all of the events of issue one, let’s just say that Laila was fired, dumped out of the ivory tower in Mumbai. Her current companion, a crow, is discussing life and death with her, while she hunts for Darius, a kid who is destined to invent immortality a few years from now. Hey, you should run out and pick up the first issue, to get the whole mesmerizing story.

Okay, that said, the second issue is a storybook/textbook example of how to write and draw a comic book. It’s perhaps a parable, a parabolic play on words and pictures. Heads and tails above the typical fare.

It’s a weaving story, a carefully created exploration, and wonderfully composed by writer Ram V (Justice League Dark, Swamp Thing, Catwoman, etc). The pacing, the dialogue, the recapitulation of the synopsis, all smoothly laid out like a magic carpet ride.

Likewise, artist Filipe Andrade (FF, Star, Dr. Strange, etc) keeps a sharp inkline. Composed panels with loads of open space, detail that looks like a story element rather than window dressing, punches of darks and lights, alternating in a syncopated rhythm. These are masterly touches, amplified by the colour assists of Inês Amaro. Lettering by AndWorldDesign.

I highly recommend this adventure. It’s a vaccine for the mainstream blues of the everyday comic reader!

BOOM! Studios, The Many Deaths of Laila Starr #2, $3.99 for 24 pages of content.