Advance Review: The Collection Of ‘Antioch’ Reads Better
by Benjamin Hall
Summary
A mysterious royal says no more to pollution and climate change with his fists and words. However, he faces imprisonment for his actions. Can he get to his day in court to expose the corporation he holds most responsible or will he face death? Also what does Frontiersman have to do with all this?
Overall
7.4/10Note: For the initial reviews of Antioch #1 and 2 (2022) in single issue form please go here and here. They cover this reviewer’s original thoughts on the series.
Writer Patrick Kindlon does well at creating character quirks. However, Kindlon does not always successfully set-up these quirks. This is one of the problems that are more noticeable with the single issues. Another strength that is present in this collection is the development of the characters and plot. While Kindlon does not give all the details for these two narrative elements he does give enough that one sees actual growth. Kindlon also lets the artists do the action without explaining it for the audience. One of the good things that comes from this is the ambiguity that certain characters face with their respective narrative ends.
Letterer Jim Cambell expertly adds emphasis to the text through sizing and bolding. It is worth mentioning that Campbell also bolds certain word balloons to help with the suggestion of differing vocal volumes.
Artist Jeff Stokely gets credit for a variant cover. However, it is just the variant for Antioch #1 which one finds in the cover gallery.
The visuals are collectively the creations of artists Marco Ferrari, Pepper, Luigi Formisano, and apparently production designer Erika Schnatz. Ferrari does the most pages out of all of them, and thus has to worry the most about consistency which he achieves. There is even a nice bit of homaging that Ferrari points out with text which is something one rarely sees in interiors. He also does a commendable job with coloring his own work. Both Ferrari and Pepper do great jobs with sizing the characters and creating depth in crowds. If this reviewer is correct Formisano is the one responsible for the two character bio pages which feature clever bits subtle and overt characterization Lastly, Schnatz does a nice job with the design work in this collection.
Antioch Vol. 1 comes out from Image Comics on Wednesday December 27th, 2023.
