What goes around comes around and around and around . . .

Welcome to the second issue of Robert Alter’s Cyberpunk meets ancient playground.  In the last issue, we got a lot of info about a corporate-run police state, where most people have gotten on with their future badassery in the form of cybernetic implants.  Tragically, this has led to new types of disease in this dystopian wonderland, and a hero from the past regains herself to fight for the future.

Marc Andreyko has a deft and efficient touch with dialogue; at no moment do you feel that information could have been shown instead of told.  The only time people talk is when they have no other way to get what they want, and that makes for a very fun read, as there are no breaks or awkwardly inserted exposition dumps to get in the way of the story.  The flow is amazing, and the book simultaneously feels longer and shorter than its 26 pages.  This is minimalistic storytelling at its finest, and it includes kickass sequences of future violence fueled by advanced beings from the past posing as Ancients to the modern slugfests, as Mulan comes to terms with what will be her destiny.  This shows not only confidence in himself but with the art team, as well.

I love the look of this work.  To me it feels like someone took every game of Shadowrun I’d ever tabletopped and tossed it onto the pages here.  Micah Kaneshiro has some great, stylistic talent and knows just how to work hand in hand with the script in a very cohesive way.  The action sequences are awesome, and every other moment is conveyed with the force of will that instantly transports you to the physical and emotional place that the story needs you to be in any moment.  This is great visual guidance for us, and it’s really pretty to look at, too.

Filled with twists and turns and tropes turned on their heads, Mulan is a series I’m very pumped for and hope to dig on for a good, long while.

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