Review - ODY-C #4By Jon Evans
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Story - Matt Fraction
Art and colours - Christian Ward Flatting - Dee Cunniffe Lettering - Chris Eliopoulos Design - Christian Ward & Drew Gill Cover - Christian Ward Backmatter design - Laurenn McCubbin Editor - Lauren Sankovitch |
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And so we see the conclusion to the story of the Cyclops. The violence, gore and evisceration continue in the lair of the one-eyed, many-breasted beast, and it is interesting how Fraction has shown the pain and despair of Odyssia’s crew as more and more are claimed as supper for the Cyclops. There are some pretty cool tricks Ward makes with the panel work too. Some teasing close-ups which move out to reveal detail are cleverly represented to deliver shocks to the reader. The colours used in the introduction of this issue definitely sets the tone:
“Rosy red dawn comes upon the girls grim and unyielding on Kylos" This despair is transformed into grim determination on the part of Odyssia herself as she formulates a plan to escape. We’re put into the point of view of one of the characters as she listlessly watches the plans being put into action around her. It’s a good way of showing the passage of time, but also to detail the events in a bigger picture. As always, Ward presents us with stunning double page spreads that reward the reader with colour and detail. The organic feel of the art design is still in full effect and the perception that we are in an amorphous, biological universe of layers and membranes is still evident. This theme is mirrored in the gruesome mechanic used by the Mothers of Achaea to escape the Cyclops’ entrail-filled food troughs. As the deed is done, and the Beast is blinded, Fraction displays his genius for composition of dactylic hexameter in, perhaps, my favourite one yet, in an explosion of fluids and brilliant greek syllabic structure with an almost mentally startling glottal stop. Too often, in Hollywood films, the euphoria and jocularity of a happy ending denies the pain and loss of comrades in the story. As Odyssia and crew make their furious escape, we are reminded of the fallen, victims of the Cyclops' hunger. It brings focus back onto the polytheistic veneer of the story and reminds us of the theme of the stories we are reading. The ODY-C’s next destination lays the foundations for the subsequent issue, with an ‘out of the frying pan and into the fire’ shock to it, as well as the reveal of the next character to receive the Fraction and Ward treatment. |
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As always, I like to wax lyrical about the beauty of the artwork in ODY-C and it never fails to please. The pressure for Ward to better the last issue must be high, as is evidenced in his amusing and informative breakdown of the drawing process in the the artist’s notes at the end of the issue. I read the previews digitally, which in the case of these comics, is not the best way to view the artwork with its many spreads and fold out pages. I do however like previewing the pages as thumbnails on my tablet to view the general trend of colour and structure of the pages, something which you cannot do so easily with hardcopy. It is fascinating to see the chromatic shift of colour from page to page, when viewed in this virtual timeline and it shows how meticulously planned Ward’s use of tone is to show the story changing. It is satisfying too to see his, now almost trademark, use of circular, onion-layered panelling on some of his pages to show fast paced exposition of narrative. To me this also conveys the theme of layering planes of existence between the realms of the gods and the mortals, almost like energy shells in an atom. It is a very pleasing metaphor.
It is worth mentioning too, the extra detail included with this issue, in the creator’s notes (entitled ‘Odyssey and Oracle’). There’s a fascinating and utterly essential Beginner’s Guide to Homeric Verse provided by Dani Colman who is a Classicist from London. There is also some great fan art, the breakdown of Ward’s artistic process mentioned previously, and as always the letters from readers with more wonderful insight and opinion of Homer’s Odyssey as well as love for ODY-C itself. They are definitely worth a read each issue, as there’s some pretty amazing little nuances discovered by readers about the comics. Fraction and Ward’s series is developing into a highly appreciated phenomenon and it is satisfying to see such a mature and accessible adaption to an age-old story.
It is worth mentioning too, the extra detail included with this issue, in the creator’s notes (entitled ‘Odyssey and Oracle’). There’s a fascinating and utterly essential Beginner’s Guide to Homeric Verse provided by Dani Colman who is a Classicist from London. There is also some great fan art, the breakdown of Ward’s artistic process mentioned previously, and as always the letters from readers with more wonderful insight and opinion of Homer’s Odyssey as well as love for ODY-C itself. They are definitely worth a read each issue, as there’s some pretty amazing little nuances discovered by readers about the comics. Fraction and Ward’s series is developing into a highly appreciated phenomenon and it is satisfying to see such a mature and accessible adaption to an age-old story.
