King Kong: The Great War #3 // Review
He's not dead. He's not sure of that much, though. He's been stranded on an island with the rest of his squad. Every step they take is a trap. Every move is lethal. It's pure hot death, more fierce than a thousand French gas guns. It's also the home of one of the most terrifying creatures on the planet in King Kong: The Great War #3. Writer Alex Cox continues his venture into Skull Island in the age of World War I with the aid of artist Tomasso Bianchi and colorist James Devlin. The title character figures more prominently in this third issue than in the second, but that's not saying much.
It isn't that big of an island. So why are dinosaur predators running around? There may be something strange about the ecology. A little space. How much pressure can there be on an island like that? It's not like a squad of German soldiers happens to drop by now and again as a food shipment or anything like that. Of course, they don't have much time to think about this. They don't have much time to think about anything. It's a dangerous island. And there's a giant somewhere in the distance beyond the dangerous dinosaur predators.
Skull Island. Seriously, call it Skull Island: The Great War. It would be a lot more honest. And it sounds so much more badass. Cox also does a great job of making the Islanders seem badass. It's very cool. The sparing narration that he uses is very poetic. And it's compelling. The fundamental need to survive is palpable. Cox points the artist in the right direction and lets him dive into the jungle with ancient, long-extinct predators. It's a fun time.
Bianchi and Devlin nail the overwhelming sense of danger in a jungle more populated with vicious carnivorous dinosaurs. The ground-based reptiles come across more powerfully than the sudden attack by pterodactyls. Bianchi doesn't quite hit the potential of an aerial attack by flying reptiles. There's an awkward panel in the mix of a German soldier in the maw of a pterodactyl...but the tyrannosaurus-like creatures that Bianchi places on the page feel suitably impressive. Devlin's color renders it all in broad strokes of varying levels of green with cool atmospheric effects that allow for a very immersive atmosphere.
It's strange to title the comic book as it's been titled. There's no question that it will sell if you have the giant ape on the cover. And indeed, his presence can be felt throughout the issue, even if he's not directly there. It just seems strange to have the title character. Only if you're on the cover, the title page, and then a final splash page. This is not a King Kong comic book. Honestly... that's a good thing, what with the sort of job that Cox, Bianchi, and Devlin are managing.
