You know what I like about Dancer? It feels ‘contained.’ What I mean is that it doesn’t feel like the world is at stake, or even a city. It’s a simple story-driven tale with an espionage backdrop. There’s no universal danger or big threat, it’s just about a middle-aged Interpol agent trying to figure out a mystery. We don’t get much of those these days. The latest entry in this mini-series continues to impress with some plot developments that make you want to read the next issue right away. Only minor thing is that the plot twist from the previous issue turns out to be a little generic, but it doesn’t affect the issue. You’d be a little insane if you haven’t been reading this series.

The official description from Image:

“BALANCE”

The assassin has Alan in his sights, and the retired operative discovers exactly what he’s up against. Soon the stage will change theaters as the assassin uses the most vicious tactics to control the fight. Snow begins to fall on central Europe as the deadly dance begins.

Character driven stories are probably the most risky in comics. If the writing is bad or generic, the story is going to flop. Thankfully writer Nathan Edmonson creates a narrative that draws you in. When you read something and you’re so into it that other noises around you doesn’t affect your attention, you know you have a good comic. The characters are humans, not super-powered beings. The main character is not exactly the strongest character in this series, yet at the same time he doesn’t feel helpless. He’s someone you can root for. Gritty would be the term that I guess would describe this series. But at the same time, it doesn’t feel gritty like say Detective Comics.

The art fits the book really well. (I know I use that same exact sentence a lot, but how else am I supposed to describe the art? It’s simple and effective.) The noir feel is a nice touch. The only minor thing I stated in the first paragraph is the plot twist at the end of the first issue. We learn what exactly is Alan’s lookalike and its background. It’s basically something we all knew, but not as original as I thought it’d be. But it’s not going to stop the issue from getting the 5 star rating. My favorite scene of writing was between Alan’s other and Quin, really great stuff there. Complete and utter tension.

Overall, this is how you judge if a comic is good: if you finish the last page and you’re left wanting more. Dancer #2 continues the story established in the previous one without any breaks or scenes to buy time. Dancer is a mini-series that would make a perfect cinematic thriller, I eagerly await the next issue.

5/5