(IMAGE / SHADOWLINE, 2012 - Present)

Review by Cory Thrall

“Comeback” is a 5 issue mini-series put out under the Image Comics ‘Shadowline’ imprint, and is a time travel story involving a company named Reconnect.  Working somewhat secretly, this company’s clients pay them to travel back in time, find the client’s loved one right before they were killed, and bring them ‘back to the future’ (couldn’t help it!), to reunite them with their family, etc.  They also make sure to fake the accident or what might have ended the person’s life, even using other dead bodies to take the person’s place.  The question is brought up - are they actually saving these people, or is there a darker, evil side to the working at Reconnect?  The main characters are agents of Reconnect - Mark and Seth, partners in time (oooh, couldn’t help that one, either!).  Mark is a by-the-books agent who resembles David Tennant’s version of Dr. Who which, with the premise of this mini-series, may or may not be completely on accident.  Seth is more of a loose cannon type, and he rides the book but also takes his own path when he feels he needs to.  This is a pretty standard ‘partner’ set-up, but the way it’s handled in “Comeback” is a bit refreshing.  They have the duo dynamics, but are also very distinct characters in their own right.  When they are separated for a while this really shows how well developed both the individual characters are, as well as their relationship.  Writer Ed Brisson (“Murder Book”, lettering in “Comeback”) lays this series out in such a way that neither the story, its sub-plots, or the characters themselves ever really have to take center stage - it’s a one package deal, this title.  The dialogue is believable and covers many emotions.  This is complemented wonderfully by the loose, almost ‘scratchy’ style of the artwork, but this too can and does work on many levels.  The writing features a lot of emotional variance, and Artist Michael Walsh (“Murder Book” ) matched it perfectly, changing a bit here and there to allow for the differences from scene to scene.  His visual storytelling is clean and precise.  There are a few characters that tend to be hard to recognize versus other characters, and while I also feel a few areas could have been fleshed out a bit more, I still enjoy this series and really think once all 5 issues wrap up it’s going to be one to remember.  A great comic, using creative writing and inspired artwork to tell a very interesting story.

WRITING: 8 / 10

ARTWORK: 8 / 10

OVERALL EXPERIENCE:  8 / 10

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