First in a four-part miniseries from Image, this issue introduces us to Al Carter – private eye and defender against Armageddon. It’s an unusual mash-up of genres, and not entirely successful, but there are elements to love in this apocalyptic tale.
Written by J. Michael Straczynski
Illustrated by Sid KotianAlison Carter is a private detective. Her beat: the end of the world, or more accurately, preventing same. With an attitude of “shoot first and the hell with the questions,” she leads a life that would drive other investigators mad, filled with monsters, demons, trolls, mad prophets, zombie detectives, techno-wizards, machinegun toting imps, and dead boyfriends. In the first action-packed installment of this new universe, Al is given her biggest assignment ever, one that will take her into the heart of Ultimate Darkness itself. The first of a four-issue miniseries, this issue contains 30 pages of story, unbroken by advertisements.
It might surprise you to hear this, but L.A. is full of monsters. Happily – as part of a profession handed down over generations – Al makes it her business to shut down apocalyptic events. We drop into the story as she confronts an Eater of Worlds, and things only get weirder from there.
From the get-go, Al tells her story in lengthy, cynical captions, giving the issue a bit of a noir feel. But the trouble here is that Al often describes what we can already see in the panel, making either the image or the text feel de trop. Noirish narration really only works when whatever’s being said fights against what you’re seeing in an interesting, ironic way, and that rarely happens here. Nor are the captions quite pithy enough to really give you that noir feel – they go on too long, emphasizing Al’s youthful, chatty nature.
At best, Al comes across monotonously fiesty, constantly throwing out some one-liner or other about the proceedings and occasionally coming up with a winner. At worst, she’s a bit like a Lovecraftian Carrie Bradshaw, worrying about her overly sensible shoes or explaining that she enjoys the pain of bikini waxes. She’s by no means unlikable, and there certainly is mileage to the idea of a sunny, bouncy heroine confronting terrifying beings, but the noir vehicle it’s all shoved into rings false at every turn.
Narratively speaking, the book is at its best when it skews more conventionally sci-fi. A tinfoil hat-wearing prophet has some great lines, and a sequence wherein Al confronts an alternative way her life could have turned out is engaging and compelling (especially for those of us who have worked temp jobs).
Sid Kotian’s art is solid, using controlled, inflected lines to lay out Al’s world with appreciable detail. There are some lovely touches when it comes to scene-setting – the reflection of palm trees in the side of Al’s car being especially cute – and there are all kinds of surprises in the dextrous layouts. A standout page involves a few panels laid out on a painterly, almost Matt Kindt-ish background; the change in look and texture really adds scope to the story, and emphasizes this pivotal moment in the narrative.
At the same time, Al is beautiful but a bit dimensionless – aside from swagger, there isn’t much to read in her poses and expressions. The narrative doesn’t call for much more than this surface-level portrayal, though, and the expressiveness of the camera angles does make up for this somewhat. And, most importantly in a story with apocalyptic elements, the horror aspect is confident and convincing. A demon, a zombie, and a row of shrunken heads all come across with a nice WTF factor, as well as a hint of humour.
All the while Bill Farmer’s colours aim for the jugular, going bright or going home. The exuberant palette matches what we get of Al’s personality, and adds a feverish tone to the more otherworldly goings-on.
Overall, this issue is a bit of a mixed bag – but it improves as it goes on, and may settle into a groove by the time the second issue rolls around. For the time being, “Apocalypse Al” is worth a look for the mash-up of genres and for the strong, detailed artwork. If neither of those things is your cup of tea, well – $2.99 isn’t the end of the world.
Final Verdict: 7.0 – Browse
