Lazarus: Risen #5

This is (in theory) going to be a short post. Not only because it talks about a single comic book but because I wanna try and cut down on the isn't of waffle I tend to spew (and I'm already doing it).

I've finally gotten around to reading Lazarus: Risen #5. It's been in my house for a little over two weeks and who knows how much older since its release (we can thank COVID and lockdown for the latter). This issue sees the plans of Forever and her allies seemingly enter the home straight as she sets in motion her intention to not only finish the war that engulfs the world but also save both herself and her replacement, 'Eight,' from the servitude they find themselves in.

Now, granted, this sounds like a very generic breakdown of the issue but, honestly, I really felt that anything more would have spoiled things. Straight off the bat, I must admit that it is difficult to remember what has happened prior. This sounds like a complaint and it isn't meant to be (although I guess it is) but the truth is that it has been so long since I read the last issue came out and while it's convenient to say circumstances prevented its release, I do wonder if its current size might be a factor.

Still, this is my only gripe because, beyond the memory issues I still found this installment of Lazarus to be a pretty compelling issue. As soon as the clean up from issue 4 (presumably) was squared away, the story seemed to take a turn that implied that this was the beginning of the end. As Forever launched a plan to 'end' the war as well as to rescue her 'sister' (Eight), I really feel like this series is only a couple of issues from the end. That said, having recently heard an interview saying that there is still a couple of years left (by my calculations), I'm intrigued about what else could happen. What particularly had my attention was Malcolm's words as he seems to know a lot more than he should, given his 'retired' status. Then there is Beth, who also displays unusual characteristics in this issue, which also begs the question 'is she planning something herself?'

I'm not sure what I can say about the art but that's only because Michael Lark's work continues to be phenomenally gorgeous like always, leaving me runing out of new vocabulary to properly gush about it. All I can say is that it felt like it reached a whole new level of mood by Lark and Santi Arcas. This was best exemplified (least in my head) by a page which displayed the dynamic between Beth and her colleague Dr Mann, which displayed just enough of the image to show what was going on without seeming too revealing.

Of course, the main benefit to these new, larger digest issues is the additional in-universe prose story and this issue also failed to disappoint. This time we were treated to a tale of a Carlyle prisoner (in some form) and the life they struggled to lead behind bars. I thought this was another riveting story, one which seemed like a fitting inclusion given the main story was focused on Forever's battle with her own form of imprisonment (makes me wonder if past stories have this kind of connection). It also intrigued me about if and where this character appeared in the comic (I'm thinking the 'Lift' arc, though I may have to check).

Again I find myself gripped about what Greg Rucka has planned next in Lazarus. With the major storyline wrapping up and most of Carlyle's Enemies disappearing, I'm intrigued to see what's next in forever's plan, and the monkey wrenches that will no doubt affect it. Regardless though, Lazarus: Risen continues to be, much like its predecessor, consistently enthralling and while I'm starting to think it would have been better in trade format (at this point), am glad I only have to wait 3-4 months for a next issue rather than a couple of years (I surmise).

Oh, and before I forget ...

I recently wrote a review on Pipedream Comics for A Year in Hereafter, a fantasy webcomic by Mikael Hankonen. Now I must confess that I was a little put off of reviewing this initially because ... well, the size of it! Committing to a review of nearly 500 pages is certainly a time concerning commitment, especially if you end up not liking it. That said, I'm glad I gave it q shot because, post read, I can honestly say that this was a truly awesome read. Of course, it had some flaws to it, such as the character information dump at the beginning and the visual look of the characters (both points I've included in the review proper). However, both of these problems pale in comparison to how addictive a read Hereafter was, how gorgeous it looked and how fantastic the characters came across as.

I'll be honest here, I'm not sure what else I can say that isn't here and hasn't been placed in the review already. But, in short though, I'm gonna just say what a truly awesome read this was and how gratefuly I am that I was the one who got the chance to review it.

So, that's another post done (though maybe not as short as I'd planned). The next one though might also be a long one as I'm going to get about reading a large collected edition that has been on my 'to read' pile for a while.

Or I might not want to talk about it, in which I might not be writing for a while.