article Comic book review - Stagnant waters

Writing: James W. Walton III

Art: Team Diaverik , David Negrete

Letter / Design: Rob Jones

Cover Artist: Sean Toleson

Foreboding and sinister secrets creep quietly into the now as consequences of actions millennia old unfurl. Meanwhile, the troubles of the future weigh so heavily that they threaten to crush everything beneath them. A wave of change rides through the universe that will touch all of space and time. A new era this way comes and with it; untold mystery and danger. In one night the world will be changed forever as plans are made behind closed doors, visitors arrive from places unknown and two young men are set on a path toward a destiny far greater than either of them could ever imagine.

Stagnant Waters is an introductory issue that sets up the story and characters of a long and complex arc with several parallel story lines and a motley of interesting characters. The characters Ian, Nicole and Quinton live in Washington DC. Ian seems to be a shy and quiet person, while Quinton is cocky. Since both of them seem to be the story’s protagonists, it will be interesting to see how their dynamic will play out in the further issues because of their diagonally opposite personalities. Quinton works for a massive company called Enki, which seems to be one of the companies that seems to be advancing the world’s science and technology research. There’s Derrick & Nolan, the goons, Children of Gaia, the eco-terrorists and a whole slew of mysterious visitors from the other worlds with unknown motives show up in the book.

The book starts slowly in the first half, but it shifts gears in the second half. A lot of what’s shown in the second half seem like fast cuts to that will connect to some parallel storylines in the upcoming issues. They sure make for a really good reading giving us enough to keep us both hooked and disoriented just as the characters felt due to the turn of events. The dialogue is rich and the narration squares had profound commentary about destiny, fate and a constant attempt to build a better future.

Artwork in the book is very much from the present age of comics. I have to compliment the artists on action panels because they’re exceptionally done. The use of blurs, fades, whooshes and speed lines are used very effectively. They ground the action really well and give you a great idea on how the scene is translating in front of your eyes. The panel configuration is quite generous in their size. Some of the large page spreads and pages with panels inset a scene provides a giant canvas and sense of scale of the story.

Lettering is effective and the sound effects are nicely done. I really liked how narration panels are used to move the story forward. They provide both a depth to the story as well as some breathing room.

The book has some usual tropes of a typical science fiction stories like an all powerful giant tech corporation, a Mojave desert based space monitoring system to name a few. Even designs of aliens, the alien general who fights Ian, are reminiscent of how aliens are portrayed in the pop culture.

The issue 1 of Stagnant waters gives you a taste of what to come, an grandly mounted science fiction epic with complex parallel story arcs. I sure want to see what the future holds for Ian and Quinton, the sisters, the aliens, Derrick and Nolan and the Enki corporation. Recommend this one as it’s well written, illustrated and leaves you in great anticipation of the following issues.