Comics

[Comic Review] “Ghost Fleet” #5 – Keeps Truckin’ On

Published

9 years ago

March 4, 2015

Reviewed By Torin Chambers. With “Ghost Fleet” #5 we’ve eclipsed the physical realm of print to enter the intangible domain of the digital. This change up has in no way impacted the high quality of visuals and writing we’ve come to associate with Ghost Fleet. Gearing down from last month’s emotional gut punch and psychedelia we’ve got a slower and relatively quieter issue. One that takes it’s time and feels a bit more grounded. Just a bit though, this is still thoroughly Ghost Fleet. Punches and a few unsavory words are thrown around, while Trace never can seem to catch a break.

WRITTEN BY: Donny Cates

ART BY: Daniel Warren Johnson

PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics

PRICE: $2.99

RELEASE: March 5, 2015

After his not so delightful ‘trip’ last issue Trace awoke in a parking lot alone. No truck, no dog and no idea where either could possibly be. Things could be better but he’s survived being shot in the head and left for dead so this isn’t going to keep him down for long. We’re brought up to speed on what’s transpired at the same pace as Trace. Rediscovering forgotten events as he does, figuring it all out with him step by step. It’s engaging, entertaining and feels fresh spending almost an entire issue with just Trace. Ward and Reno (the killer introduced last issue) are still present but only in the periphery, nicely bookending Trace’s story. Reno’s sections are especially funny in a morbid, childlike way.

While the Issue reads as a sort of refractory period from last month’s blast that does not make this an issue to skip or pass over. The stakes are raised exponentially by the issues end, putting a hell of a lot on Trace’s plate. No issue of Ghost Fleet has ever been a waste, each one always gets a major plot point across that pushes the momentum story faster. Bit by bit stakes are rising to a boil, never sacrificing its forward momentum.

The visuals stood out a bit more this issue, specifically the colours. They’re much more vibrant, dynamic and kinetic, going with and shaping to the action of the scenes. Sure they’re more unrealistic at times but there’s nothing wrong with that.

Ghost Fleet continues to be of the utmost quality, it’s a crime that it doesn’t have a bigger fan base. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, don’t judge this book before you’ve read it. It’s not a hoorah for beerguts, it’s an excellent action-thriller-mystery that a lot of comic fans would enjoy if they read it.

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Torin Chambers is a rad dude from the nineties who does film stuff or something. Thomas the Tank Engine is his favorite transformer. Find him on Twitter @TorinsChambers

Zac Thompson

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Comics

‘Witchblade’ is Getting Resurrected This Summer in New Comic Series from Top Cow and Image Comics

Published

7 days ago

April 18, 2024

Meagan Navarro

Witchblade, the popular comic series that initially ran from 1995 to 2015 and launched a TV series, is getting resurrected in a new comic series from Top Cow and Image Comics. It’s set to unleash heavy metal, black magic and blood this summer.

Look for the new Witchblade series to launch on July 17, 2024.

In Witchblade #1, “New York City Police Detective Sara Pezzini’s life was forever fractured by her father’s murder. Cold, cunning, and hellbent on revenge, Sara now stalks a vicious criminal cabal beneath the city, where an ancient power collides and transforms her into something wild, magnificent, and beyond her darkest imaginings. How will Sara use this ancient power, or will she be consumed by it?”

The series is penned by NYT Best-Selling writer Marguerite Bennett (Animosity, Batwoman, DC Bombshells) and visualized by artist Giuseppe Cafaro (Suicide Squad, Power Rangers, Red Sonja). The creative duo is working with original co-creator Marc Silvestri, who is the CEO of Top Cow Productions Inc. and one of the founders of Image Comics. They are set to reintroduce the series to Witchblade’s enduring fans with “a reimagined origin with contemporary takes on familiar characters and new story arcs that will hook new readers and rekindle the energy and excitement that fueled the 90’s Image Revolution that shaped generations of top creators.”

Bennett said in a statement, “The ability to tell a ferocious story full of monsters, sexuality, vision, and history was irresistible.” She adds, “Our saga is sleek, vicious, ferocious, and has a lot to say about power in the 21st century and will be the first time that we are stopping the roller coaster to let more people on. I’ve loved Witchblade since I was a child, and there is truly no other heroine like Sara with such an iconic legacy and such a rich, brutal relationship to her own body.”

“The Witchblade universe is being modernized to reflect how Marguerite beautifully explores the extreme sides of Sara through memories, her personal thoughts, like desire and hunger, in her solitude and when she is possessed by the Witchblade. So, I had to visually intersect a noir True Detective-like world with a supernatural, horror world that is a fantastic mix between Berserk and Zodiac,” Cafaro stated.

Marc Silvestri notes, “This is brand new mythology around Sara, and I can’t wait for you to fall in love with her and all the twists and turns. Discover Witchblade reimagined this summer, and join us as we bring all the fun of the 90s to the modern age and see how exciting comics can be. I can’t wait for you to read this new series.”

Witchblade#1 will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, July 17th, for $4.99 for 48 pages. And it’ll come with multiple cover variants.