Review: Figment #2

Blarion Mercurial’s journey into a fantastical new world continues in Figment #2! The highlight of the book is of course the title character. Figment provides excellent comedic relief from having no clue what piliferous is to sounding out kah-cough-phony and mentioning a Chair Man.

The world Blair and Figment have arrived in is gorgeous. Jean-Francois Beaulieu uses bright, vibrant colors from pink trees to red birds and dark green plants to long, flowing blue valleys. Artist Filipe Andrade provides a vast landscape with a multitude of terrains. He fills the world with interesting creatures including the aforementioned red birds, but also a giant winged dog-like creature. Andrade really sells the creature as dog-like in its mannerisms from a lolling tongue to its hidden grin as he leads Blair on a game of catch-me-if-you-can.

Writer Jim Zub allows Andrade and Beaulieu to carry much of the story with many of the first pages involving Figment and Blair plummeting to the surface of this new fascinating world. He does build upon their relationship with a combination of serious questions from Blair and playful, pointing out the obvious answers from Figment. However, parts of the dialogue seem forced and unnatural to the characters speaking the words. At one point, a storm is brewing on the horizon and Blair wonders what it could be; Figment responds “You talk too much. This place is wonderful. Let’s explore!”

The book also in parts carries a very different tone from the first one; it becomes more serious especially when the Chair Man attempts to close the portal. Zub introduces the counter to Blair’s imagination and chaotic creativity, Order. The introduction of this character removes the importance of the journey through imagination that Blair is on. The focus shifts from the journey to the apparent villain he will eventually face. This new threat does add another dimension to the realm of imagination. It is not always a joy ride along a yellow brick road, but can sometimes be filled with nightmares.

One of those nightmares pops up in the form of winged-aliens. The winged-aliens set out to capture our lead characters, but in doing so they must use alliteration to “Capture the clowns, quick and quiet!” Zub’s ability to incorporate alliteration into everything the aliens say adds the fun back into the story and he balances a direct, serious threat with fun dialogue.

7.0	The fun journey into imagination is halted with the appearance of a very serious threat, which will need to be confronted.

Review: Figment #1

Take a journey into the imagination of Blarion Mercurial. This is the premise of Jim Zub and Filipe Andrade’s Figment series. However, it can be quite a challenge to imagine once you are an adult.

Zub begins the story over a century ago in London, England circa 1910, where the reader is introduced to Blarion Mercurial, or Blair. Blair is dressed to the nines with a dashing top hat, a fancy blue suit and a swanky bowtie. He is an up and coming scientist working on a high-budget experimental energy device, but he is no ordinary scientist. Blair thinks outside the box, he isn’t interested in ionizing atoms; he wants to harness the energy of the mind!

Unfortunately, Chairman Ilocrant, fit to fill the role of an over-aggressive disciplinarian bent on sacrificing dreams in favor of so-called reality, is giving Blair a rough go of it. Zub emphasizes Ilocrant’s overseer temperament through his demeaning lectures. Andrade reinforces Ilocrant’s personality through an apt use of his pointer finger, whether it is shoved into Blair’s chest or stuck in the air as he emphatically lectures at him.

Luckily our hero is not so deterred, and Zub uses Blair’s inner-thoughts to let the reader see what drives him as well as making a general critique of society, namely “setbacks are a sign they should settle for what they have.” Blair, on the other hand, believes they are part of “a journey to create something bigger and better.” Blair is determined and will not let one failure hold him back, although he does feel enormous pressure to succeed because failure leads to an inability to care for his downtrodden family.

One of the more iconic pieces of the book is the helmet Blair wears when conducting his experiments. It is unique, fit with steampunk goggles, and just one of many details Andrade uses to let the reader slip into the turn of the century atmosphere he has created. Colorist Jean Francois Beaulieu adds to the depth with bright colors from the light purple in Ilocrant’s suit to the masses of green, yellow, red and blue books on Blair’s shelves inside his workshop. The world is lively and reinforces Blair’s optimistic nature.

Figment #1 is a wonderful introduction into the realm of imagination, with beautiful bright colors by Beaulieu, and interesting steampunk designs from Andrade that coalesce with Zub’s story of following one’s dreams because you never know if they might just become a reality.

7.9	There might be many setbacks, but one should never give up on following their dreams especially if they are a scientist with a Mesmonic Convertor!