Advance Review: ‘Benjamin’ #2 Is Good Authorial And Artistic Madness
by Benjamin Hall
Summary
Say you are an author with the name Benjamin J. Carp. Also say you are mysteriously back from death and trying to find out why. Perhaps it has a basis in one of your books. Yet, with so many books in your bibliography can you be sure of which one it is?
Overall
10/10Writer Ben H. Winters goes from a reliable narrative to a mind-bending trip of a tale by means of a gradual change between the two. The reliable portion is probably seventy percent of the issue which reads as standard sci-fi. Yet, the mind-bending percentage is in portions since there are a few pages early on that visually factor in. When it comes to dialogue Winters keeps up the characters talking about subjects, but not directly to each other aspect from the first issue. However, it occurs in small amounts in this issue in comparison to the first having it seemingly a majority of the time. There is also a nice amount of levity from the dialogue and characterization.
Artist Leomacs creates the interior art and he continues to do amazing work when it comes to the character designs and facial expressions. The characters remain on model throughout the issue. Not to mention the suggestion of movement with the poses is very good. There are a few pages with incredibly mind-bending transformations of settings. Also there are moments of transitioning between scenes that are practically cinematic. It is worth mentioning that Leomacs uses just the right amount of depth on the opening panel. A singular arguable problem exists with the layout of one double page splash possibly being easier to read in print than digital.
Colorist Luca Bertelè uses the same variations of color palettes as in the first issue of this series, at least for the more standard parts. The more experimental parts have either additions or subtractions to the respective color palette.
Letterer Becca Carey does a near perfect job with placing the text in a way that ties well with the visual pacing. All the text elements also stand out while not overshadowing the visuals.
Artists Christian Ward and Malachi Ward are responsible for the creation of their respective covers. Both designs feel fresh and are somewhat unique. Each artist has a fourth wall break occur within their respective designs yet Christian Ward’s does so in a very subtle way. Christian Ward also has a full art version of his design on the second variant and this may be more appealing to some readers. When it comes to the different covers’ color palettes it is a buyer’s opinion of the hues that will determine which is preferable.
Benjamin #2 comes out on July 16th from Oni Press.
