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Blackgas #1
Review posted: 16 Feb 2006
Writer: Warren Ellis
Artist: Max Fiumara
Artist: Sebastian Fiumara (assists)
Colors: Andrew Dalhouse
Publisher: Avatar
4.00 out of 5 Stars
Reviewed by Matt Rawson
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I have in the past generally deeply lamented the offerings of
Avatar. I loved those precious few years that there was no new Lady
Death garbage polluting the racks, and Avatar had to go and bring
her back in all her big breasted, brainless glory to give
impressionable new readers the notion that this is what comics are:
trash and T&A. In addition to Lady Death, Avatar also
employs the horrible marketing gimmick of variant covers, all of them
generally poor. Even Warren Ellis’s work for the publisher have
largely been sub-par, comparatively. When I saw Blackgas in my weekly
haul, however, I decided to give it a shot. What can I say, where I
don’t necessarily like everything he has written (see my review
for Down #1), Ellis is among my all-time favorite writers because when
he does hit the nail on the head, he slams the $#!+ out of it. But,
thinking back to his previous work for Avatar, I didn’t have
high hopes for Blackgas.
Warren Ellis delivers up to his standard,
Max Fiumara meets the art chores with competence and a certain
understanding of the horror genre, and Andrew Dalhouse rounds out the
team with superb coloring.
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I sat down to read it, expecting to find a mediocre story that
Ellis had scripted in between writing his brilliant Desolation
Jones and stepping out for a cigarette and a drink. In other
words, something that felt as if it was created in passing. I was
pleasantly surprised at what I found.
In Blackgas, college student Tyler has returned to his
northeastern island home of Smoky Island to introduce his girlfriend
Soo to his parents. When they arrive, they say their greetings, and
then the two head further into the island to stay the night in a cabin
owned by Tyler’s parents. Along the way they meet a couple of
colorful characters. A man obsessed with the history of the island,
and a dangerous yokel who’s family lives in the woods of the
island. Later that evening they are confronted with a deadly secret
that has been unleashed upon the island.
Horror is a tricky genre to pull off in comics format. Not only
does the wandering eye ruin any visual scares that might jump out on
the next page, but the static nature of comics leaves one to linger on
a particular image, that would be scary if given quickly and then
taken away (e.g. the demonic face from The Exorcist) making the
reader wonder what he or she just saw. To pull off a good horror
comic, a writer and artist must truly understand the nuances of the
genre. Zombies, as a horror element, can be scary (Night Of The
Living Dead), or funny (Sean Of The Dead), or dramatic
(The Walking Dead), but they can also be dangerously cheesy,
much like vampires, if simply rehashed from what has already been
done. Zombies are my absolute favorite monster, and I love to see them
envisioned in new and different ways.
Warren Ellis delivers this quite well in Blackgas.
Max Fiumara’s artwork is well rendered in most places, but
does have a tendency to digress. For example, Soo, the female lead of
the story, has a very inconsistent facial structure throughout the
issue. But in other places Fiumara reminds me of such masters as Jae
Lee and Michael Lark, with stark, often harsh shadows and realistic,
yet stylized facial features and body language. The lighthearted
scenes in Blackgas are where his art falters. He definitely has
room for improvement in that area. When the lights are on the
characters often seem stiff and awkward. Mood and shadow seem to suit
Fiumara’s style much better than a nice stroll on a bright sunny
day. I sincerely hope that he will in future efforts tap into his
strength for the macabre, but also work on his “everyday man and
woman.” As it stands, Fiumara’s art definitely shines much
better in the darker corners of the story.
Where Fiumara could use a bit of improvement, Andrew
Dalhouse’s color work is flawless. Subtle variations in tone and
light sourcing speak volumes that Dalhouse has an understanding of
light and shadow and how, in addition to the solid ink work, it can
make or beak a particular image or scene.
In conclusion, yes, I was pleasantly surprised by Blackgas,
especially given my feelings for the company that publishes it. Warren
Ellis delivers up to his standard, Max Fiumara meets the art chores
with competence and a certain understanding of the horror genre, and
Andrew Dalhouse rounds out the team with superb coloring. Even though
this first issue was mostly successful in and of itself, the most
important feature of Blackgas #1 is that it made me interested
in getting number two.
—CCdC—
Cover image used without explicit permission in accordance with the "Fair Use" provision of US copyright law.
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