The Scorched #34 // Review
Jessica has people looking for her. She needs to keep from being seen. So why is she meeting someone in a public place? Why is she wearing boots, tight jean short cut-offs and a top that might as well be a scarf? Sometimes the best way of blending-in IS standing out. Jessica has a lot to deal with in The Scorched #34. Writer John Layman continues a fun series with artist Stephen Segovia. Color comes other page courtesy of Dinei Ribeiro. It’s a solidly enjoyable chapter that largely plays-out in tightly-defined drama between major beats in the larger storyline.
She’s wearing really big sunglasses for more than one reason. She’s also wearing a blonde wig. The openly revealing sexiness of her outfit is going to completely throw-off anyone who might be looking for someone who doesn’t want to be seen. It’s also a really sharp disguise. The guy she’s meeting with doesn’t even recognize her for a couple of panels. She has some important news to deliver. Things are getting better, but there are...complications. Spawn is going to show-up and say hello as well. The two of them aren’t together for long before the action starts.
Layman delivers some plot points and fuses a few elements of the story together in a fun, little dramatic moment for the series that delivers a little bit more characterization for a few of the characters in the ensemble. Of course...most of the issue IS focussed on Jessica--and she IS the single most interesting character in the series, so it’s only natural that #34 would be one of the better issues in the series so far. There’s some intrigue closing-in around the center of the action that continues to provide some forward momentum for the narrative.
Segovia’s art feels particularly distinct to the overall style of classic Image comics of the 1990s...which is a bit weird considering the fact that so much of it is grounded in interpersonal drama. There isn’t nearly as much actual aggressive action as those comics did. So it feels like a classy mutation of the classic formulas of the Spawn universe that feels well-developed with Ribeiro’s color brilliantly adding depth and luminosity to page and panel in a way that feels very well-executed. With any luck, Layman and Segovia can continue along this tack moving forward.
Overall, the general feel of the story hits something of a Highpoint here. The focus on a single character. The cleverly interesting dramatic elements. The appealing locations and the brisket plot structure all come together together in a way that makes this issue a little bit better than previous issues issues have been in the recent past. If Layman and the company can hold onto the energy that they're putting together here, and it's going to make for a much more appealing series in the long run. Other issues issues in the recent past haven't been bad. They just haven't been quite as appealing as this one.
