Sneha Jaiswal (Twitter | Instagram)
Plot overview: A slimy shroud that annihilates everything in its path consumes large portions of the Earth, compelling people to inhabit small slivers of land referred to as needles. The protagonist, Jo, resides on Needle Three, facing perpetual terror from a Darth Vader-like villain named Charon. When a mysterious traveler suggests the existence of something better waiting to be explored, Jo and their friends decide to risk everything in their quest to find a place where they could potentially start anew.
Jo and his friends discover they’ve been betrayed and lured into danger by the mysterious stranger called Rowan at the end of issue three of “By A Thread” by Scott Snyder, Valeria Favoccia, and Whitney Cogar. Issue #4 however starts with a flashback to show what happened to Jo as a young boy, right after he loses his arm to the shroud. The rest of the chapter reveals Rowan’s true intentions, and the primary squad attempts to save themselves after finding themselves trapped in a prison as part of a nefarious plot that has very little to do with them.
I wasn’t sure what to expect from this offbeat sci-fi comic book series, but the twists in this issue were mildly disappointing. If it weren’t for the short length (only 30 pages) and the fantastic artwork, this would’ve been a struggle to get through. However, readers do get an interesting backstory to Charon, who was initially projected as the antagonist, but Rowan and his gang take on the villains’ part at this stage.
The second half of the issue is packed with chaos and fight scenes, and while the colors and illustrations are great, there’s very little tension in the air despite the dire situation everybody is in. Hopefully, Zack Snyder and the team have more ammunition up their sleeves for the next issue because this one is the weakest link in the tale so far.
Rating: 3 on 5. The series is available on Kindle Unlimited.
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