Artist Dave Acosta Pulls Out All The Stops: Reviewing ‘TerrorWar’ #5

TerrorWar #5 must have been a labor of love for artist Dave Acosta.

Acosta, more than ably assisted by inker Jay Leisten and colorist Walter Pereyra, draws up a storm in this issue. By the end, you’re convinced that he’s auditioning to be the next artist on a series like Carnage or Doctor Strange.

First he illustrates series protagonist Muhammad getting absorbed by a Terror – nightmares literally come to life and spreading fear across Blue City. Using large panels and splash pages, Acosta devotes plenty of real estate to the sinewy, gelatinous monstrosity. It may be disgustingly fascinating, but you cannot take your eyes off of it.

Later, Acosta treats us to Muhammad’s torture as the Terrors probe his worst nightmares, literally stripping him down to his skeleton, brain and nerves before putting him back together. Like some of the best comics, this one can largely be told just with the visuals – without any text.

That’s a compliment, not a criticism, of Saladin Ahmed’s script. It’s straightforward and moves the story along, if only a little. In the last issue, halfway through this limited series, Ahmed made the curious decision to give readers lots of background. With that in the rearview mirror, he seems to have freed himself to bring the story to its eventual conclusion. Now he just needs more happening in each issue. Otherwise, it could feel a bit bloated.

Still, if readers are going to be subjected to bloat, better to have the pages filled with Acosta’s illustrations. If he can consistently deliver this level of quality, he should be able to guarantee himself an opportunity to draw more familiar characters (assuming that’s what he’s looking to do). One thing is for certain though – any comic book editor looking at TerrorWar #5 will cannot help but to be impressed by this talented artist.

TerrorWar #5 is available for purchase today.