Wasteland #31

Written by Antony Johnston
Art by Remington Veteto

We haven't seen an issue of Wasteland since February, which makes this story, which unfolds over a long period of time and intertwines with other 'recent' issues, a little difficult to follow.  Regardless of that, Wasteland continues to be a very good comic.  In this issue, Golden Voice, the spiritual leader of the outlawed Sunner religion, is arrested while plotting to set off bombs throughout Newbegin.  In Marcus's city, there is no such thing as a fair trial, and Goldy is taken to be publicly executed.

A lot happens in this issue - Skot and Jakob have a very interesting conversation, wherein Skot's Sunner status is revealed, and Jakob learns that Abi, his adopted mother, is still alive.  I feel like, were this issue to be read as part of a trade, all of the momentum that Antony Johnston built into the story, but which was eroded by the long wait between issues, will make this a pivotal chapter in the longer story.  The last page of this book has me intrigued.

I hope that whatever is going on with this series is getting resolved.  I know that Christopher Mitten left the title, and his announced replacement, Remington Veteto has done a fine job with this issue and the previous ones, but nothing seems to be getting the book back on track.  The next issue is going to be guest-drawn by Brian Hurtt, a known and reliable artist, but I don't know where things will go from there.  This issue does not have a letters column or text piece (aside from the usual excellent Ankya Ofsteen story) explaining what is happening.  For a long time, this comic was just about the most reliable monthly indie on the stands; it's too bad that it can't seem to reclaim that status.

Wasteland #30

Written by Antony Johnston
Art by Christopher Mitten and Remington Veteto

Well, it's only been seven months since the last issue of Wasteland, which used to be just about the most reliable independent book I bought, showed up on the stands, so I suppose I can be forgiven for being a little bit lost here.

For the last four or five issues, the series has been focusing on a particular character, and showing us their perspectives on a string of events, taking place over almost a year of story time (and so much more in real time).  This issue focuses on Golden Voice, the Sun Singer who has been leading the Sunners' Rebellion over the last few issues.  It's a good issue, as it shows us the progression of this pacifist into increasingly violent tactics.  As the issue comes to its close, it looks like Goldie is going to reveal one of the secrets that has had me intrigued since the series began, but that looks like it will happen next issue (hopefully that will happen this year - no other issues have been solicited).

The issue continues to feature Christopher Mitten's layouts, although I thought that was not going to happen any more.  New artist Remington Veteto, who was supposed to be getting the series back on track, does a decent job, although his line work is much more solid (and occasionally more stiff) than Mitten's.

There is no text piece explaining what is going on with this book, but there is another very interesting Ankya Ofsteen travelogue piece, which stands out because it discusses the colour of the sky in the Wasteland world, something I've given no thought to before, as the book is black and white.

Here's hoping we'll see another issue of this comic by the summer.

Wasteland #29

Written by Antony Johnston
Art by Christopher Mitten and Remington Veteto

This is only the fifth issue of Wasteland to be published in the last year.  That is not so shocking for an independent title, especially one of this quality (check out stuff like Elephantmen or Godland, or Walking Dead a few years ago).  However, when this title began, it was uniquely regular in its publication schedule, and I have really noticed and disliked the change in regularity.

With this issue, Antony Johnston provides us with the explanation that Christopher Mitten, the extraordinary artist of the first 28 issues, can no longer manage the title.  This is a shame, as Mitten has done a fantastic job in constructing the Wasteland world.  This is a book with a lot of unique design elements, as the team have carefully and exhaustively constructed the science fiction world where this story takes place.  I consider myself a fan of Mitten, even though at times I found his art to be confusing and hard to follow.  I wish him luck in his future projects, and will be very likely to pick them up.

And so, with this issue, Mitten is only doing layouts, and new artist Remington Veteto is doing the pencils and inks.  This arrangement will last for a while, before Veteto takes over full art duties.  In these types of situations, its often hard to tell who has done what, but it seems that the baton is being passed to capable hands.  Veteto has a stronger line than Mitten, which gives the figures more weight.  I always felt that Mitten's often washed-out look worked best in the desert scenes, giving the hint of brightness, but in this story, set within Newbegin's buildings, this heavier look worked well.

The spotlight of this issue is on Dexus, the Watchman, as Johnston goes over the same events of the last few issues, this time from his perspective.  Had these books come out more quickly, this story might be getting boring by now, but with the lengthy delay between issues, I find it only helps to solidify each character's take on events.  I look forward to some resolution of this story, and the focus being placed on Golden Voice in the next issue (which hopefully comes out soon).