Published by: The 77 Publications
Review By: Alski
Popular UK anthology “The 77” has been a great success, and has also been a great outlet for creators to show what they can do. Each issue so far has been funded through Kickstarter with no difficulty, and there's no reason to see the momentum slowing down as they unleash issue three in the next two weeks. Ade Hughes cover from his very popular “V” strip seems a bit muddy to me, like 90s 2000AD, but there's alternative covers for those who like a choice.
Speaking of “V”, it kicks off the 64 page A4 issue in glorious black and white, which to be honest suits the story, written by Steve Bull. We're still not too sure what's going on, although this part leans more towards exposition than violence and leaves the reader a bit more up to speed. Hughes' art is very good, as usual, and it's certainly a stand out strip that leaves you wanting more.
Ace artist Neil Sims makes his third appearance in another one off called “Grid” by Dave Heeley. This one looked like it could be a cool, ultra violent series from the preview but is unfortunately just a two page joke that makes me hope they find Sims a decent, serious piece of bloody horror that he can be put to good use on, as this is pretty, but vacant.
“The Screaming Hand” continues, and as ever Conor Boyle's black and white art impresses whilst Kek-W's script confuses. It's fun to read and great to look at , but I wish I knew what was going on.
Bambos Georgiou's “The Cell” is next, following up it's debut in issue two. Much like “The Screaming Hand” it's a good read that really doesn't give us much insight into what it's about, with no world building but a still compelling narrative backed up by first class colour art from Andrw Sawyrs (and yes, that's how he spells it).
New thrill “The Trackless Depths” follows it, at least I hope that's what it's called, as the title font is a bit too swirly for my old eyes. It stands out from the pack with great pencil (or light pen, maybe) art from Mac, and concerns an old sailing ship and some sort of supernatural goings on. Though pretty to look at, not much happens over six pages. Hopefully the next part will have more energy to it.
“Matilda Atkins And the Amulet Of Destiny” is a new strip by Mike Powell that features brilliant modern and quite cartoony art from Sarah Millman that works like a charm. Set in a school lesson, the titular heroine gets a magic amulet, but I won't spoil it by saying more. It's light, fun and well written, and although it says “The End” at, well, the end, I want to see more of Matilda. This wouldn't be out of place in one of the 2000AD Re-Gened issues, and would be a highlight there, too.
Another part three next, as “Division 77” continues its tale of humans forced to fight for an alien race. The titular division isn't happy about it, though, and a revolution seems to be the order of the day. Dave Heeley's script rattles along at a nice pace, with Sinclair Elliott once again providing excellent art that's coloured just right as well. Along with “V”, this one holds the issue together well.
Comics legend Lew Stringer's “Sgt Shouty” gets his usual page for some silly, shouty shenanigans, and as usual it's the perfect antidote to all the seriousness, this issue setting up a longer story which should be interesting.
“Forgotten Reality” is a one off from Anna Everts that after it's four pages left me with the feeling of “Oh... is that it?”. Phil Elliott's art is nice, with his own style, but the story just didn't do much for me. Ah well, there's always one in an anthology, and usually different for each reader, too.
“Undertow” gives us a part two next, continuing the story of a for-hire scavenger in a waterlogged world. Much like the first episode it's intriguing but quite slow, with Jeremy Dunn's art doing the heavy lifting for Joe Dunn's script. Another one that may benefit from a read through when it's got going a bit more.
Back again after last issue's part one is “Gut Crawlers” by Dan Whitehead. The injured Paul Williams has been replaced by Filippo Roncone for the follow up, and he does a fine job in his own style. The premise of getting fuel from the guts of massive space whales is cool, but I get the feeling that the two episodes could have told the same story in one, as all it is is just a set up for future adventures with very little peril. Still, one to watch as the idea certainly has legs, and they could do worse than have Filippo carry on the art duties.
Writer and artist Brendon T Wright's daft strip “Martian Law” gets another outing,and as before I found it confusing in places as there's a lot of info to digest, but ultimately a fun read and I really do like that art. Unsurprisingly set on Mars and concerning a lawman (see what they did!) it's a nice retro inspired humour tale that's not too whacky and always worth reading slowly to take it all in.
Another one page humour strip next, as Skate Worm” skates out (Naturally) for his encore in the comic. It's very light and although well drawn by Morgan Gleave the lines seem a bit thick for the reproduction and it's hard to follow what is happening. I get the feeling that this could be a funnier strip, rather than just a “worm with attitude” thing.
“Penny Pentagram” returns in an episode that fleshes her out a bit, with art from J Roydon that seems like it's been taken from animation stills, which is very effective. There's a werewolf on the loose, and Penny is tasked with sorting it out, which sees her meeting a handsome stranger to team up with, like you do. It's a nice strip that flows well with David Thomas' script laying things out more clearly than in previous outings. Hopefully the start of a good story for Penny.
Overall this a solid issue, but if you're a newcomer I'd advise getting the first two issues as well, because you can't have too many Indie comics, right?
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