ADVANCE REVIEW! Wildfire #1


Will Top Cow’s latest series spread like wildfire or flop? Read on to find out.

The official description from Top Cow:

Is genetically modified food an end to world hunger or a first class ticket to the apocalypse? Dan Miller is a plant biologist working with a small team perfecting an accelerated plant growth process. When things go wrong, Los Angeles pays the price in a disaster story unlike any before.

WF001_covCDo you have an opinion in Genetically Modified Food? Well if the answer is yes then you may be interested in this series as it focuses heavily on the subject. It does however handle the subject in a strong yet balanced way with it showing both the positive sides to the concept whilst also showing the potential hazards and economical problems.

Matt Hawkins does a fantastic job of introducing his latest series teasing us with a disastrous plot development before jumping back to the few days leading up to it. The main thing I enjoyed bout Hawkins writing on this issue was the pure passion as he allows the characters to take aggressive yet tactful stance on their argument. I also really enjoyed the way he game multiple development points with the ending acting as a huge teaser. Despite this I did however find the issue to lag ever so slightly at times.

Linda Šejic has produced some wonderful artwork on this issue with the detail being to a high standard. The character positioning and the overall intenseness of their facial expressions also helped to add impact with the overall energy it produced being fabulous. Despite this I did find her layouts to be slightly jarring at times as though for the most part it was tremendous the unique way she bordered panels featuring loud and heated encounters gave a harsh look to the overall look. Nevertheless her art was still amazing and along with her vibrant colours it acted as a brilliant visual accompaniment to this story.

Wildfire gets off to a great start as though the pace is slightly lagging at times the subject matter and intense character interaction grab my attention with the series’ future looking very promising. Recommended.

OUR RATING
7.5
  • + Matt Hawkins gets this series off to a sensational start.
  • + Stunning art from Linda Šejic.
  • + Wonderful subject matter and brilliant teasers.
  • - Slightly lagging at times.

S#!T Talking Central

  • Steven Mckee

    If this wasn’t a 3.99 book i’d have given it a try

    • John McCubbin

      All in all I found it to be a really interesting read, but as you said the $3.99 mark makes it harder to justify getting the series as if it was $2.99 it’d be a no brainer, as Kevin Bacon would say.