The Field #2: Review


After one of the strangest (and yes, most innovative) debut issues of the season, the sophomore issue of The Field hits the stands this week. And, man, do things get even stranger.

Here’s the official word from Image:

The Smoke Eaters are in hot pursuit of Christian and our still-nameless hero. Secrets will be revealed! Friends will be betrayed! A man’s face will be turned into hamburger!

True its name, this series opened with a half-naked man running through a field, being chased down by a gun-TheField_02-1toting fundamentalist aptly named Christian. And yeah, that was page one. Well, two issues into this four-issue limited series writer Ed Brisson has done a stellar job of keeping the momentum going as our nameless hero and his kidnapper (or is it roadie?) try to evade a biker gang that seems intent of killing (or is it kidnapping?) our half-naked protagonist. Hopefully my tentative language will reveal one of the joys of this arc so far: it’s really hard to pick out the good guys from the bad guys. And while some *major* secrets get revealed here, issue #2 is mostly fun to read because it’s dripping with well-paced mystery. And gore. The only drawback so far has been Brisson’s overly flowery and at times-too-precious dialogue — his plot is so simple and direct that his attempts at Grindhouse phrasing feels distracting.

Artist Simon Gough offers a perfect style for this book — commanding, rich and fun. A blend between old-fashioned cartoons and hyper-realism, he’s found a knack for capturing the insane mood of this book — especially the gory parts.

So far The Field has been a joy to read. If you want a book that offers equal doses of violence and mystery, go grab this thing today.

 

OUR RATING
8.5
+ Great Art + Compelling Story - A Bit Too Precious Dialogue

S#!T Talking Central