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A review by rosseroo
The Massive, Vol. 1: Black Pacific by Garry Brown, Kristian Donaldson, Brian Wood
4.0
Some time in the not too distant future, a series of meteorological and geographic catastrophes throw Earth into chaos. Massive earthquakes, storms, sea levels, and more lead to a complete breakdown of modern society. Amidst this post-apocalyptic new world sails the Kapital, the smaller vessel of environmental activist group Ninth Wave's two-boat armada. Aboard are the five remaining members of the group: Callum and Mag are a pair of former Blackwater-type mercenaries who joined the activist group; Mary is a very driven woman with a mysterious past, Gregor appears to be an ex-Russian mafia hacker type, and there's a purple-haired American woman whose name I forget.
The rest of Ninth Wave was aboard the Massive, which was the group's much larger mothership -- but the two got separated in a storm, and now the Kapital roams the seas in search of the Massive. This collection of six issues jumps back and forth between that search and flashbacks to various eco-disasters and the aftermath. Along the way, we see the Kapital attacked by Siberian pirates, Callum dealmaking with a Somali warlord, Mary and the other woman captured by some other goons, and a strange encounter with a British ship hauling mysterious cargo.
It's all pretty captivating, even if it does feel mostly like setup for something much richer than what we get in its pages. Especially when you factor in a few short interstitials providing more character backstory that appeared in the Dark Horse Presents series. It's hard not to end the volume wondering just who all these goons in goggles are who seem so interested in the Kapital, not to mention whether or not Callum and his crew will find the Massive, or whether that will prove to be an elusive white whale.
The artwork is excellent throughout, maintaining a consistently gritty tone and palette, even across three different artists. It's one of the better post-apocalyptic stories I can recall and I'm definitely intrigued and wondering where this series is headed.
The rest of Ninth Wave was aboard the Massive, which was the group's much larger mothership -- but the two got separated in a storm, and now the Kapital roams the seas in search of the Massive. This collection of six issues jumps back and forth between that search and flashbacks to various eco-disasters and the aftermath. Along the way, we see the Kapital attacked by Siberian pirates, Callum dealmaking with a Somali warlord, Mary and the other woman captured by some other goons, and a strange encounter with a British ship hauling mysterious cargo.
It's all pretty captivating, even if it does feel mostly like setup for something much richer than what we get in its pages. Especially when you factor in a few short interstitials providing more character backstory that appeared in the Dark Horse Presents series. It's hard not to end the volume wondering just who all these goons in goggles are who seem so interested in the Kapital, not to mention whether or not Callum and his crew will find the Massive, or whether that will prove to be an elusive white whale.
The artwork is excellent throughout, maintaining a consistently gritty tone and palette, even across three different artists. It's one of the better post-apocalyptic stories I can recall and I'm definitely intrigued and wondering where this series is headed.