Cryptozoic Man #4 Review

After four issues is this a franchise that needed to exist? Read on to find out.

The official description from Dynamite:

FINAL ISSUE!!! The piglets have come home to roost! Any and all questions you may have had about Gray aliens, legendary cryptids, forty-story tall demon swine, and insane, sadomasochistic industrialists are answered in this bang-up conclusion to Cryptozoic Man!

It can be said that there are many a fanboy or fangirl who would love to break into comics. Simply sit down in front of a computer desk and frantically create their own world or continue the adventures of an existing property. And that right there is what makes this special, because from beginning to end you can feel the devotion of someone getting to see their own work on display.

The whole of the narrative is a psychedelic experience that’s going to either garner your attention or birth bouts of sheer annoyance. I happen to fall in the former category, as Bryan Johnson takes the narrative originally conceived by him and Walter Flanagan to a fitting but confusing end. That right there is the problem facing this entire series, as the text is delivered in such a fashion that carries an overabundance of ideas that muddle the arc. Still there’s a core that keep this beast moving. To sum up: when it counts the script is there and even leaves the door open for a continuation.

The art by Walter Flanagan is exactly what this tale required. He hands in a cinematic feel that echoes the history of the medium without fully abandoning modern tendencies. There are instances where the facial expressions range in quality, either overly detailed or not fully realized, leaving an unfinished body of work. To the talent’s credit, when he has to draw some very out there illustrations he’s more than up to the task and thanks to the colors by Wayne Jansen this can be a fetching display.

Cryptozoic Man #4 is an imperfect but engaging ride that gives us a somewhat rushed ending. Still, the creative team yields enough quality to earn my recommendation.