Reviewed By Jorge Solis. With twisted glee, “Escape From New York” #3 delivers tons of action, guns blazing, and cut-off limbs flying everywhere. The one-eyed Snake Plissken has a whole new set of problems as he attempts to make his latest getaway. I’ve waited a long time for a sequel to “Escape From L.A.” and it’s finally here.
WRITTEN BY: Christopher Sebela
ART BY: Diego Barreto
PUBLISHER: Boom! Studios
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: February 4, 2015
Trapped in the hellhole state of Florida, Snake Plissken has to raise an army from a bunch of dim-witted recruits. War is coming and the Twins have an actual nuke ready to blast everyone away. With a bomb attached to his collar, Snake has to figure out how to get to the nuke, without getting himself killed. But then, why save the world, when Snake already knows there’s nothing worth living for?
What I really found interesting is how writer Christopher Sebela takes Snake back to his solider days. In the opening pages, Snake gives a beatdown to his recruits, who are nothing more than weaklings. He reminds them that soldiers are meant to fight for the mission and their reward is a trip back home alive. But none of his recruits bother to listen; they just want to know what happened in the Big Apple.
Sebela twists the narrative by having Snake break his own rules. Fighting his destiny to be a leader, Snake has to save the day, even though he’s not interested in doing so. Sebela continues with the themes about an ex-solider finding a mission worth fighting for.
Artist Diego Barreto delivers a military training camp that is reminiscent of recent war movies, such as “Jarhead.” Notice how none of the fresh recruits have any muscle and they look young in their twenties. The recruits are always in awe when they look at the legend himself. The heat blisters as Snake runs around the basic training camp, with no cover from the sun.
Barreto keeps the action moving at a fast pace. You feel the hits as Barreto captures the punches and kicks in extreme close-ups. The best sequence in the issue is when Snake has to break out of a room by riding on top of a chandelier.
“Escape From New York” #3 is a fun and quick read. I’m really looking forward to the next issue.