prism-stalker-4-feature Reviews 

“Prism Stalker” #4

By | June 7th, 2018
Posted in Reviews | % Comments

With the revelations and pacing shift of last issue, “Prism Stalker” has felt like a must-read for me. The series combines some of the most otherworldly sci-fi elements I’ve seen with the narrative tone of an exciting Shonen Jump training season. It’s uncompromising in its world building, and presents a tough reality to readers about inner potential. Can Sloane Leong’s series continue in it’s upward momentum this issue?

Cover by Sloane Leong

Written, Illustrated and Colored by Sloane Leong
Lettered by Ariana Maher

The thrashing, nebulous present collides with the deep-rooted past and threatens more than one future. Vep’s will, crystallized but ravaged, is challenged and set aflame when confronted with a powerful delusive attention.

Let’s focus on the protagonist first, the downtrodden yet ambitious Vep. Leong presents Vep as a kind of Sisyphean character at this point. She struggles in this alien academy to learn the deadly and interesting techniques it aims to teach, yet due to her limits compared to other alien races, it seems an impossible and deadly task. Leong makes the reader pine for Vep’s success, which is even more tantalizing with the glimpse of her being able to grasp it in this issue. To have the story bear down constant failure on her this issue makes her more interesting as a protagonist, as we see, despite the cost, Vep will do anything to be victorious and avoid expulsion to the labor force. We feel her shock at experiencing the hostile barge in on the religious prayer, and her general awe and terror at new experiences like being given a final chance to prove herself. Leong brings us right down to her level, making her a great character to cling onto in this alien landscape.

What’s great about this series, and this issue, is that Leong started off by throwing readers into the deep end of “Prism Stalker” sci-fi lore before slowly helping us through with each issue. Last issue we found out about the forms of combat used in this world, and now we learn about the depths of its mastery. Leong almost has Vep as human voice of reason in this way, as she tries to push her basic human understanding onto otherworldly methods. When Vep wakes up in a medical ward, we see the patient next to her has skin made of crystal, something acquired as students move further along their learning process. A little further along in the issue, and we see how graduates can overcome an incomprehensible psychic attack that leaves Vep and company practically immobile. It hints at a deeper world to be explored, and to a journey that Vep will eventually undertake with the natural unfolding of the narrative, leaver readers like myself excited for the series’ potential.

I’m pleasantly surprised with how much the pacing in this issue compared to others has improved. There’s a lot of events and sequences that take place within this issue, yet it doesn’t feel overstuffed or preachy. We can break the action down into at least eight significant events taking place, all which feel important to the narrative and character development, and each of them are given appropriate real estate according to each’s importance on the central storyline. The opening sequence of Vep falling from her climb and receiving a beating from her mentor to bring out her latent powers gets a solid four pages. It works as a way of reminding readers of her struggle, of her purpose in the academy, and the intense pressure placed upon students by the seniors. The other major scene shows a slowdown due to a hostile presence inflicting psychic trauma on Vep, making the scene feel appropriately heavy and abyssal. Leong has a great understanding of speeding up and slowing down pace to convey a tone appropriate to the story at hand.

In terms of art, the style and fluidity of Leong’s art seems to get better and better with each issue. With the dynamic environments of this chapter, Leong gets to play with camera angles more to give the story a more isolating tone. The issue opens on a sheer cliff edge which switches between a side on angle to show the verticality of the scene, and a backwards shot to show the enormity of the cliff. Soon after, we get a double page spread of Vep and her peers walking through the living city, a shot so enormous it gives us more context than a lot of the issues prior. Each corner of the shot is populated by an intriguing aspect, whether it be amoeba-like lifeforms floating mid-air, silhouetted aliens intrigued by the surrounding environment, or giant fruits emerging from a rippled, organic-looking wall. This issue has truly cemented “Prism Stalker” in an alien world, one that has little connection to our own or any other sci-fi tale before it.

Continued below

The sequential work continues the theme of fluidity and jet-paced action that the series has upheld thus far. It goes hand in hand with Leong’s narrative pacing right from the start. In the opening scene of Vep scaling a cliff, the movement in slow and laborious, with our protagonist slowly struggling up the cliff face with the environment remaining static. Then, as Vep is attacked from behind, the world around her starts to spin, with Leong using speed lines just enough to give a sense of speed and desperation. Through her descent, we see Vep’s knocked on the cliff-face and blasted off her feet by a kick. Leong brings the scene to a screeching halt after this, as we see Vep with desperation try to unleash her latent powers to no avail. The environment surrounding her is clear again, and we see each movement articulated carefully in each panel to indicate this sudden stop, working well in tandem with the narrative. The hostile attack scene is another tour-de-force, with readers experiencing Vep go through a psychedelic physical transformation from panel to panel, experiencing the psychic trauma with her. It’s fluid and beautiful and terrifying to experience, and shows Leong’s diversity at action sequences.

Leong’s color palette is a powerful and heady combination of vibrant neon tones that warp and evolve throughout the issue. There’s a diverse range of colors for each scene, but they never feel like they’re present just for the sake of it – each choice is important. The opening has a stark, orange-yellow feel of desolation. The medical ward is a sickly, uneasy green, to go with the alien’s displaying of crystallized skin. The double-page spread of the diverse environment is a deep purple and orange, inspiring wonder and amazement. It’s a psychedelic spread of contrasted colors that work well thematically and aesthetically, giving the book a distinct tone.

“Prism Stalker” remains to be one of the most unique books on the stands, with an interesting premise that promises deep storytelling and original concepts. The fourth issue retains that value, delivering storytelling even bigger in scope and art that is well-paced sequentially and beautifully rendered visually. Sloane Leong is a creative force increasing in momentum with each release.

Final Score: 9.3 – “Prism Stalker” #4 is a sublime combination of words and pictures – an expertly paced story with great character work, narrative intrigue and sequential art.


Rowan Grover

Rowan is from Sydney, Australia! Rowan writes about comics and reads the heck out of them, too. Talk to them on Twitter at @rowan_grover. You might just spur an insightful rant on what they're currently reading, but most likely, you'll just be interrupting a heated and intimate eating session.

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