Filed under: Comic Reviews, Indie Comics | Tags: Cascade, Chris, Josh Sherwell, Mike Garley, Mike Stock, The Kill Screen
The quest for survival continues in The Kill Screen #2 as writer Mike Garley, artist Josh Sherwell and Letterer Mike Stock team-up to build on the cracking start in issue #1 (reviewed here) and that teaser ahead of LFCC earlier this year
Opening with a flashback to the corporate offices of Star Fruit Industries as they revel in the power they enjoy over Government &the public, although that kill screen event is coming at them faster than a blue turtle and we soon see the computer glitches seeping into the real world in as we saw in that first issue. Pixels, blue screens & gorilla’s prepped to throw some barrel’s help us step back into the world the creative team have built for us – a warped, sort of reverse Matrix where the casual nods to all things computer & video game related are poured into the pages with a real sense of subtlety. We’re soon back in the present day with Chris telling the other members of his group about meeting up with Jill and their run in with the pixel-infected zombies they had to escape…..and all at the loss of both Jill and his gun……..mission fail or what???
So the survival stakes are just as high and we soon see some new faces appear on the scene as Max & Elle try to escape their green-faced Followers in another hint at the real world where social media and even the escape into the likes of The Sims has us warped into thinking we’re achieving something…….and that escaping this is the real means to surviving. Some chasing, some fighting and the last bottle of Max’s sweet, sweet booze adds a hint of loss for the last of life’s luxuries. Something that’s built upon further as they meet up with Chris and his group just as Chris is edging closer to the last of his cigarettes…..marked in genius-fashion with a health bar.
So they need a plan…..and that plan is for Chris to show Max & Elle the way to their escape as the rest of his group go ahead on a two-man Quad bike. Great plan for the quad bikers in the group but more of a suicide mission for the others and that all leads us to a locking of horns between Chris and Max. Short-lived though as the group of Followers continues to grow as they try to make their escape over miles of rough terrain….and just when you think they’ve made it……they haven’t. That ship has sailed (:D) and what else can we do at a time like this but have a smoke and face these followers head-on as Chris chooses to sacrifice himself to give them time to escape…..Chris vs Followers starts off OK but sheer numbers and the destruction of his last smokes surely mark the end for our hard luck hero but they hadn’t counted on Player 2 aka Max pitching in and we’re soon back to winning ways and the arrival of backup sees us ease out of the issue with replenished cigarettes for Chris and a sail into the sunset for all our survivors.
The stellar work from issue #1 was just the start for The Kill Screen as writer, artist & letterer continue to maintain this fantastic read with what seems like a casual & easy approach. The pages flow, the story & characters are somehow more real given their unreal situation and that means it’s an escapism I can get onboard with and a title I can highly recommend to anyone I meet……that means I’m that guy in the street shouting about what comic you should read…..be you human or pigeon.
If you’re not local to me for a street-shouting then check out the list of appearances where you can get your hands on the first two of these issues from the creative team.
10/10
G-Man
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