Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Captain Swing and the Electric Pirates of Cindery Island #1 of 4
Avatar Press
Ellis & Caceres
Warren Ellis' latest science fiction effort takes place in the past and is more of an exploration of events that actually occurred with a twist of fiction wrapped around it. This issue introduces a few key characters, provides some of the action to drive the plot and gives a number of entire pages of text to provide historical accounts for the uninformed reader in about thirty pages. The comic is fast moving and makes you use your brain to see the angles in the early going. For a set up issue to a mini series this is a very good issue, especially for the history or science fiction buff.
Essentially the story is set in 1830 London where there are two competing police forces. One is hooked up with the magistrates, the Bow Street Runners, and the other, the Peelers, eventually become the London Police. The two sides run into each other and some chest-bumping occurs. However, the real setup is what they witness.
A man, seemingly illuminated in electricity, fires a couple of shots of small light bulbs at them before escaping in a flying boat. The Peeler is shocked and intrigued while the Bow Street Runner denies what's been witnessed. It's a simple plot, but it gets a little more depth as the magistrates and the politics get involved. For the most part, though, the issue is a skeleton of a plot.
The comic book stands out because of the details poured into the construction of London in 1830. The text pages help the reader learn about the Peelers, Bow Street Runners and all of the intricacies of their duties and how they came about. Additionally, the first issue provides elements of science fiction as some of the text pieces explain some of the electricity and flying ship components. For a comic book seemingly light on plot it is a dense story nonetheless.
The artwork is stellar. Considering the bulk of the comic takes place at night we find an amazing amount of detail in the London scenery as well as the character features. The comic book looks gorgeous and still has an underlying feeling of suspense. The comic has one very graphic page but for the most part it is a trip into the past with heavy emphasis on making it look authentic.
Generally Warren Ellis comics have a select audience. This comic isn't as heavy on the science fiction, though it contains some elements of it. Instead it's more of a historical look at what might have been using actual facts to help drive the offshoot part of the story. The comic book is worth checking out if you like a period piece where some science fiction seems out of place, but not impossible. I'm looking forward to the next issue.
4 out of 5 Geek Goggles
