Writer: T-Bone
Artists: Ron Randall (p), James Taylor (i)
Publisher: A1 Oregon Publishing
Plot:
The book opens with four young women calling themselves the Jumping Shrieks leaping out of an airplane with a camera crew following close behind them. We then see this group performs several stunts as they plummet toward the ground, with the cameras studiously recording their every maneuver. As the group performs one successful stunt after another, we see the jump reaches a point where the four women separate so they can each enjoy the rest of the jump in their own way, and it is here that the book shifts its focus to member of the group who calls herself Tiger, as she imagine she's a bird flying free through the air, and exacting vengeance upon the callous members of the human race who pollute the environment. We then see the group deploys their parachutes, and after making a rather dramatic landing, the foursome busy themselves with packing up their chutes. We then see Tiger hooks up with one of her fellow jumpers, who goes by the name Dakota, and as the two discuss a party they both plan on heading to later that night we see Dakota expresses a concern that her boyfriend is looking to take their relationship to the next level, and she's unsure if his feelings are genuine. We then see Tiger makes a plan that involved the emotion reading Zack to discover the truth about Dakota's boyfriend.
Comments:
I make a habit of keeping an eyes out for Burt Lancaster's films I've yet to see, and as luck would have it just the other week I stumbled across as John Frankenheimer directed film from the late 1960s called the "Gypsy Moths". Now it's far from being Burt Lancaster's best film, as he's a stuck playing a character who's a little too world weary & subdue (though a young Gene Hackman manages to liven up the film). So, why am I discussing this old film in a review of this comic? It's because the film is about a trio of parachute jumpers who move from small town to small town putting on shows and John Frankenheimer manages to deliver some fairly impressive free-falling shots, as well as a pretty solid array of tricks for them to perform. However, while this is able to keep a film entertaining, when it's translated over to a comic book form, I couldn't help but be a little bored. I mean it's clear T-Bone put a lot of effort into learning the terminology, and the various stunts that are performed, but the book never really establishes a sense of danger, and there's no real urgency created, so all we're left with is a visually impressive display of characters performing stunts while in free-fall. There is a rather bizarre moment though, where one of the characters imagines she's a bird, and at least this changed things up a bit.
This issue devotes roughly two thirds of its page count to the parachute jump, so when the characters do get on the ground and the problem is introduced I couldn't help be feel a bit let down. I mean following on the heels of what had to be a thrilling time, the two girls suddenly break off into a conversation about how one of them is unsure whether her boyfriend is fully committed to her. Now I will give the writing credit for delivering an exchange that does lead into the conversation rather well, but the transition still felt awkward, as one would expect these two to be in pretty high spirits following the exhilaration of the jump, and as such this conversation felt like it was dictated by the writer rather than the situation. I also have to say that there is something slightly underhanded about using Zack's mental link to discover whether the boyfriend's intentions are genuine, or if he has an ulterior motive, as while I can see why this would be an appealing course of action, it's also a little too disingenuous given these characters are supposed to be the heroes in this comic. One also has to wonder how they'll explain their insight to the worried girlfriend in a manner that would assuage her doubts, or even worse if they manage to confirm them.
Ron Randall is a very solid artist who makes the most out of this issue's big set piece, as he does some very nice work on the free-fall sequences. The idea that these characters are falling through the air is nicely conveyed, as the art manages to show the pull of gravity is ever present, though the body positioning of these characters, and the little details like the long hair of one of the girls acting as an indicator of which direction is up. The art is also pretty solid when it comes to detailing the various stunts, as we get a pretty good look at what they're trying to accomplish, and how it would look on film. The art also manages to capture the sense of joy on these characters faces, as one can't help but notice how much they are enjoying themselves right for the very first shot of them leaping out of the plane, until they make their landing on the pond. There's also some nice work on the scene where one of the girls imagines herself as a bird, as the art comes up with a fairly clever way of visualizing what the character is imagining. I also have to give the art credit for its facial work, as the look of concern on the girl's face as she discusses her problem does a wonderful job of presenting her doubts, and Wynter's expression as Zack is whining about his fake name is also rather cute.
Final Word:
Following on the heels of the opening issue that I felt didn't really make full use of the idea that its hero is able to change his identity, comes this second issue, where our hero plays next to no role in the action whatsoever, and the role he's going to play in the story isn't made clear until we reach page twenty of a twenty-three page story. Now I can understand spending a little time developing the supporting players of the book, but it's a little early in the game to be shifting the spotlight away from Zack, especially since the first issue didn't really do all that great a job of introducing us to the character. The book also spend over half the issue on the parachute jump, and while it's a visually interesting idea, that's all it really is, there's next to no excitement created, and except for an unusual little moment where the plight of environmental pollution is examined, the sequence is rather dull. Still there is a side-plot involving Zack & the scientist who created him that looks promising.
What did you think of this book?
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