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FACTION PARADOX #1
"Political Animals"
Mildly Recommended (6/10)
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Image Comics
Writer: Lawrence Miles
Pencils: Jim Calafiore
Inks: Peter Palmiotti
Colors: Paul Mounts
Letters: Christa Dickson
Editor: Lars Pearson
Price: $2.95 US/$4.00 CAN |
Faction Paradox makes an interesting contrast with Image's other book-related, licensed release of this week, The Hedge Knight. Both are spun off from novels, and have "name" authors attached. Both take place in unusual time periods, in the case of Faction Paradox the American Revolution. However, while I found Hedge Knight to be instantly accessible, despite the many assurances of the editor in the back of Faction Paradox, I found that I generally couldn't quite work out what was meant to be going on, and that's even with knowing the general premise ahead of time. However, in reading this first issue, I also get a very real sense of potential, and it's possible that further down the line the stories and characters might start to coalesce and make sense... it's just that the first issue is not what you'd call the most reader-friendly entry point into this strange, albeit intriguing, concept.
When I hear the mention in solicitations of a group of time travellers trying to maintain their grip on power, I imagine something a little more science-fiction oriented, but Faction Paradox surprised me by being closer to a fantasy or historical comic than anything else. In fact, it reminds me a little of Image's excellent Rex Mundi, although it doesn't start quite as clearly or strongly as that book did. At any rate, though, Miles, Calafiore, Palmiotti and Mounts do a good job of establishing the setting of this story, with all the pomp and circumstance of England during the colonial period coming through quite clearly.
Unfortunately, it is there where the clarity stops, and the confusing, half-told story begins. The story seems to center around some sort of ritual hunt of a great beast, and it somehow is an indication of power for the time-travelling Faction as well as the upstart American colonists, and there's a possibly cannibalistic and shamanic warrior who is somehow involved, but I'll be damned if I can make sense of the whole thing. It's frustrating largely because there are clearly neat ideas there, but Miles is very stingy about revealing the meaning of them to the reader. It builds a sense of mystery, and I'm especially curious about the deadly prisoner whose powers seem to revolve around the use of bone, but there's no accessible entry point for readers, nothing solid to grasp onto so that these mysteries can have more meaning.
Calafiore has done impressive fill-in work on a variety of DC and Marvel titles, but his work on Faction Paradox stands out so far as a career highlight. I'm actually reminded somewhat of Charlie Adlard's under-rated work on The Establishment, which had a similar attention to detail on backgrounds, a mixture of the strange and mundane and of course a look that felt very "British." There's no doubt when reading this issue that it takes place in colonial England, thanks to the fashions and backdrop, even though it includes such unusual elements as a spectacularly-drawn wooly mammoth or bestial monkey-like hunting creatures. Calafiore also gives the members of Faction Paradox and the creature trapped in the prison cell an alien, creepy feel.
In reading Faction Paradox, I'm mostly struck by a feeling that I'm being kept at arm's-length from the story, despite pages of text that spell out more of the history and text introductions by most of the creative team. This sort of strange, half-explained approach can work, as with much of Grant Morrison's work, or it can never quite come together, leaving the reader always with more questions than answers. I'm not sure where Faction Paradox will wind up at the end, but I hope that some of the potential in this issue is realized, and that I'll come to view this somewhat confusing start as a necessary evil to building an intelligent and complex story.
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