Action Lab / Danger Zone
Written by Ram V
Art by Sumit Komar & ROSH
Letters by Aditya Bidikar
Tales of pirates and the high seas have been told for quite some time. With games like Sea of Thieves and others, plus the recent movies and television series, you could say these stories are becoming increasingly popular. Danger Zone & Action Lab have their own tale to tell, and the fate of entire civilizations may depend on this heist. It’s time for A Brigands Story and to explore the Ruin of Thieves.
The story follows a group led by the vicious Stilian Desault, who is leading a group to steal the Myros Pendulum before it can fall into the wrong hands. They are also on a ticking clock, as the artifact appears with the Myros Comet which can already be seen overhead. The story picks up with Stilian’s crew landing on an island to gather themselves and try to obtain more information. What they end up running in to is a lot of trouble, but also, an interesting chance encounter. I won’t spoil that here, but it really changes the direction of this first issue. It also adds depth to the characters in Stilian’s group, as they come across something along the way that simply cannot (or should not) be ignored. It’s almost like when you’re playing a video game, and you have your main task, but a side mission presents itself and it’s something that you know you have to do. If that wasn’t enough, we now see a third group emerge in another part of the world who are also seeking the Myros Pendulum. A priest and an army captain don’t usually make for a good combination, but you would be surprised who is the most vicious. We do get a bit of a cliffhanger at the end of the issue, and you wonder if the quest was all for nothing.
This story definitely kept my attention. I do feel like there was some backstory that I missed out on, but there is a great description in the beginning of the book that explains how the story got to this point. Once you get the faces to match up to the names, which does happen in the middle of the issue, new readers can easily settle in to this. The motive here is pretty simple on all sides, but it actually worked for me that it wasn’t unnecessarily complicated. I like the added aspect of several different groups, who all seem to want the same thing for different reasons. It’s a race against time, other factions and there are also some political games going on at the same time. The art was pretty solid throughout, but seemed to especially shine in the action sequences. There is also a scene with fire that really popped and gave more meaning to that particular scene. While I don’t find myself itching for the next issue, I do want to see where this story goes and think the characters have a solid foundation. I could easily see being drawn in more with another issue or two.
RATING: PULL / BUY