Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Walking Dead #123
Image Comics
Kirkman, Adlard, Gaudiana & Rathburn
Chapter nine of "All Out War" is the game-changer that this arc seemed to be teasing all along. It's hard to imagine what occurs over the next three issues before this wraps up but it seems like the final battle has already begun in this issue. It's a fast-paced issue that makes great use of the quiet moments at the beginning of the issue, while putting the pedal to the metal at the end. While much of the character development that Kirkman relied on throughout this series is gone, he has created a significant character in that of Negan. Negan alone is worth the price of admission.
The comic begins with a bunch of scenes between some of the characters in Rick's camp. Rick shows some optimism in the face of the war. Carl gets reacquainted with an old friend and Maggie and Andrea share a moment. Kirkman is re-visiting what's left of his initial cast, perhaps in preparation to kill some of them off. He's been known to have these moments act as a "good-bye" for characters on the way out.
The issue turns towards the invasion in dramatic fashion. Negan is given the best lines and clearly steals the stage during the invasion. The battle is quick to start up but it seems to occur in drips and drabs as the entry points seem to slow the invading force. One criticism would be the battlefield topography being so ill-defined. It's impossible to get a sense of where people are in relation to the wall or how much real estate exists between any two points. Obviously the comic provides the reader with the battle-confusion aspect well but a little bird's eye view would have helped a lot.
The visuals are good. The quiet moments in the beginning aren't terribly detailed or that wide ranging but the art picks up when the action starts. There are a number of exceptional pages and panels, especially once the body count rises. Overall the book captures the chaos of a battle very well.
The Walking Dead is throwing everything up against the wall in this arc. This particular issue seems to break away from the rest as the action appears to kick-in drive towards the conclusion. The cliffhanger is a good one as it seems to tease something a bit unthinkable. This is a very good read. It will be interesting to see what comes next as the prospect of three and a half issues of battles might be impossible to pull off.
4 out of 5 Geek Goggles
