Elsewhere #4 - Review

That magnificent woman and her flying machine

Written by: Jay Faerber
Art by: Sumeyye Kesgin
Colorist: Ron Riley
Letterer/Designer: Thomas Mauer
Publisher: Image
Reviewer: Andrew McAvoy


Wanna see a pioneering female aviator from earth, spearhead a fighting force of aliens armed with World War Two Nazi weapons? I promise you, she's one hell of a shot?!?! Thought you might. Let's roll.


Okay, so the opening page of this book is a a gem, as a group of Korvathian Rebel trained by D.B. Cooper let blast with the full force of their Nazi armaments. Budda Budda BLAM Budda Budda Blam Blam go those guns with a pounding rhythm as the bullets fly....and fail to knock over a single target. As Cooper sums up, "This is gonna be harder than I thought". Those Rebels do look completely bad-ass though (they'd definitely pay their $20 a month to keep the lights on in Weird Science DC HQ) - awesomely rendered in Kesgin's art and Riley's colors.

There's no time to waste though and soon they are marshaling their efforts before winging their way (literally) towards Kragen's fortress. Although they sustain some losses they are soon in control of their destiny having repelled the fortress' defenders. While Amelia seeks out her missing flight partner Fred, D.B. Cooper fulfills my expectations of him as he sneaks towards a room stocked with so much golden treasure it would make Scrooge McDuck green with envy. Elsewhere the loyal Korvathian Tavel has been captured by Lord Kragen, and given his past protection and assistance to Amelia, she's more interested in helping him rather than tracking down the sneaky D.B.

They blast their way in to Kragen's throneroom just in time to disturb an axeman as he brings his weapon down on Tavel's neck. Kaboom!!!! goes the Nazi weaponry as they arrive just in time and disrupt the axeman. Then things take a strange turn as Lord Kragen makes a surprising revelation...

Bits and Pieces:

I have to confess to that the ending of this first arc left me a bit flat. The big reveal threw out a key element of mystery and I'm not sure that it should have. It seemed to end the arc a bit too neatly as though they didn't expect the series to run past this issue and wanted to wrap the title up neatly in a bow. It lacked the structure of the previous issue. It was still pretty enjoyable, but just didn't have that fizz that the previous issue had. I am eager to find out what happens next, and if you have liked the series up until now you'll want to read this issue. It is, however, a step down from what we've seen up to now.

6.5/10