Michael Turner’s Fathom: The Elite Saga #4 Review


As the penultimate issue unfolds, is this event really something that’s worth the attention of long time fans of the franchise?  Read on to find out.

The official description from Aspen:

The ending to the most epic storyline in Fathom’s 15-year history draws near!

The return of one of the most significant Blue citizens to ever live will shatter the fabric of the Fathom Universe as we know it! While Anya will learn that Anika¹s fate may be tied to the arrival of this person‹which could lead to the baby¹s unfortunate demise!

There are two world unique to our planet one above the water and the other below its surface. Both have societies that are filled with similar elements and as our lead characters continue their search for Killian‘s lost child that becomes more painfully obvious.

J.T. Krul pens the script and the seasoned scribe brings back quite a few elements that I’m sure many fans thought were long dead and buried.  I have to say I was very impressed with the scope of the tale being told here, and the subtle and not so secret connections between this arc and even the issues found in the original volume were more than welcome.  There were moments where the dialogue got a bit too wordy as actions got bogged down but despite that the overall package did more right than wrong, yielding a compelling release.

The art by V. Ken Marion is improving with each outing.  As his pencil strokes become more comfortable within the narrative the visuals get bolder.  Taking on the duties that were once handled by an industry legend can be a difficult task, but despite preconceived expectations I found that the illustrations matched the quality of the yarn.  There were moments were things came off rather sparse in details but overall I’d have to say that this body of work is the talent’s best to date.

Michael Turner’s Fathom: The Elite Saga #4 is an excellent precursor to what’s sure to be an insane finale that’s simply worthy of the years and scope behind the story.  Recommended.

4/5

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