That’s more like it.
Creative Staff:
Story and Art: Matt Kindt
Colors: Sharlene Kindt
Letters: ?
What They Say:
With time running out, Mia launches a final, desperate attempt to rescue her brother. But the mission is endangered as soon as it begins when the crew encounters the dangers of the ocean floor: earthquakes, lava, and the creatures that lurk in the deep.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
After the disjointed previous issue, DeptH gets its legs back and begins moving the story along again.
Although eleven hours have passed, Mia launches a rescue mission to save her brother, Raj. The suits come equipped with twelve hours of oxygen, so there’s still time to save him, but only if the rest of the DeptH crew get off their duffs and move. Luckily for Mia, the station’s original generator is located in the trench where she and Raj separated, and if any of them are going to survive, they need to get it up and running.
Time moves back and forth between the present and the past as Mia fights against her memories just as much as she does the environment and the crew. Her perfect memory works against her in this situation, as all her painful and delightful memories of Raj and her family emerge.
She could be chasing those memories at the end of this issue. The generator is housed in an underwater cave system, and even though oxygen is present in the cave, it’s in short supply. When Mia’s party surfaces, they discover a helmet—presumably Raj’s—and she chases a voice through the caverns. The voice says strange things, like, “Kill me” and “Anyone but her” and seems to come from all around her, almost as if the coral retains her brother’s voice. It’s very creepy, and I’m excited to see where it leads in the next issue.
As always, the art remains both ugly and beautiful in this work. Kindt’s style appears purposefully rough, almost hiding his mastery of panel placement and rhythm. Sharlene Kindt’s colors enhance the effect, looking like she used color pencils instead of slicker, digital palettes. You can actually see the pencil scratches and the difference in weight in shading on every page, and together the two artists create a singular, unique effect that arrests the eye and adds depth to the story.
In Summary:
Although the story’s slow pace is beginning to hurt the comic, this current issue is much stronger than the previous one. Where issue three seemed to suffer from the “and then” problem, issue four gets back on track, giving us a story that’s as beautiful, deadly, and unusual as the ocean. Dr. Josh gives this an….
Grade: A
Age Rating: N/A
Released By: Dark Horse
Release Date: July 20th, 2016
MSRP: $3.99
