Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Walking Dead #78
Image Comics
Kirkman, Adlard & Rathburn
The latest issue of Walking Dead does two things that this series does better than anything else; Rick takes charge and a major confrontation occurs. This series generally builds up to an issue like this and when these issues drop they're usually fairly amazing. This is the case here. Rick and company moved into the community and while things within the new community have been stirring, a threat outside has also been looming for a number of issues now. While last issue seems to have put an end to the confrontations on the inside this issue deals with the problem coming from the outside. This was an excellent read.
The community is allowed to mourn the loss of three people with a funeral and church service. Despite the fact that this is out of the ordinary it seems the group pulls off this sendoff seamlessly. The moment that came across as the most uncomfortable was Rick speaking about the man he killed. I'm not sure if the speech was a way to get the community fully behind Rick and his decision or if the idea was for Rick to have a chance to explain his actions to everyone but he was never able to complete the speech.
A lone man standing at the front gate on the outside makes some noise getting everyone's attention. Rick approaches the gate and is met with demands. While the threats seem fairly pointless because it's just one man against one man things get complicated because a red dot appears on Rick's shirt. He's got a laser sight pointed at him meaning if Rick makes the wrong decision he'll be killed.
Rick's prepared. Not only does Rick put his life on the line for everyone in the community he also has his trusted allies ready to go to work on the invaders. Rick proves again he's the man and he simply won't get caught off guard by a bunch of unorganized thugs with guns.
Adlard nails the confrontation at the gate perfectly. He's got the action and reactions for the key players depicted exactly as you'd expect. For example, the look on Rick's face when he discovers the laser dot on his shirt is pitch-perfect. When you consider this is all done in black and white the artwork takes on another level of appreciation in my opinion.
For the readers of this series that have been waiting for something explosive to happen then this is your issue. It's not on the level of prison invasion but this is a very good confrontation filled with tension and surprises. This is another one of those issues that make this series such a pleasure to read.
5 out of 5 Geek Goggles