Written by: Emmanuel Herzet
Illustrations: Eric Loutte, Daniel Bay
Coloring: Sylvaine Scomazzon
Publisher: Derde Stroming Lombard
Alfa Eerste Wapenfeiten #1 Vuurdoop – Comic Book Review
The life of a soldier isn’t an easy one, especially that of those who are deployed constantly to resolve dangerous situations. This series brings us to the young soldier Tyler, who is currently undergoing training but already shows a lot of promise, even though his behavior is not always agreeable for his superior officers. Nonetheless, like it or not, his deployment in the field will truly become a baptism of fire, one that might even haunt him for a long time to come.
Even though Tyler is the main star of the series, this first issue tends to introduce the overall theme of the coming issues by sketching the following situation. Thirdnail Inc, an information technology company, invites a lot of corporations to a remote location to discuss a very lucrative business deal where all parties involved will receive a very handsome sum of money, if the different companies switch over to their technology to create a sense of ‘harmony’. Of course, if this was the case then things would not have to have been presented in such a “hush hush” manner. The motives of the company are simple, they wish to spy on everything and everyone.
In the meantime Tyler and his friend Boyle get scolded by their superior officer for not following orders. Nonetheless, thanks to Tyler’s capabilities both soldiers get one last chance and are soon deployed after a hostage situation has taken place. Nonetheless, the overall situation is quite fishy as the man in question is someone who discovered the plans of Thirdnail Inc, but the soldiers of course do not know about all these top secret items. That being said, Tyler’s first day in the field might even become his last.
The pace of this first issue is rather slow and even with the many things going on, it feels rather uneventful. It’s clear that the series is still finding its footing, but a bit more focus on some of the action scenes would have been nice, seeing the series revolves around a soldier. Although things move rather slow, Emmanuel Herzet does his best to sketch the scenario for the coming issues.
Illustrations by Eric Loutte are rather realistic, even though the detail level is not always that consistent. Daniel Bay helped designing the backdrop of the series, which is detailed and adds a lot to the overall atmosphere of the issue. Sylvaine Scomazzon opted for a varied color palette, albeit with rather soft tones. This tends to work properly for the tranquil scenes, but some highlights during the action scenes would have been nice.
Conclusion
Alfa Eerste Wapenfeiten #1 Vuurdoop presents us with a rather monotone start of the second Alfa series. While the overall appearance and plot prove to be interesting, things are still a bit too vague to know how the series will eventually fare. If you’re a fan of stories where the government spies on you, this one might be worth it. If you’re a fan of an action packed adventure, this one might not suit your fancy.
Alfa Eerste Wapenfeiten #1 Vuurdoop - Comic Book Review,
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