The Vault #2

Written by Sam Sarkar
Art by Garrie Gastonny

I wasn't all that impressed with the first issue of this mini-series, but upon reading it a second time, I felt that there was more potential than was apparent at first glance.  That fact, coupled with the fact that this was the smallest new comics week in months (thanks DC), meant that this series got a second chance.

This issue is much better, as the story about archaeologists and treasure hunters digging up a strange sarcophagus on Nova Scotia's Sable Island became more of a creature story, like Aliens.  The thing in the sarcophagus is too large and heavy to be human bone, and of course, someone decides to open up the large coffin and have a look.  This doesn't go well, and people start coming under attack from it.

We're squarely in movie-pitch land here, as I suspect that this comic is one of those created simply with the aims of selling the movie rights, but it's still becoming a decent story.  I especially liked the scene with the wild horse, although I'm sure that most of the American audience would not be aware of Sable Island's fabled horses, especially since the text does nothing to explain their presence, even when they begin to take on a key role in the tale.

This is not a great comic, but it's a decent one, with nice art.  I'll definitely be getting the conclusion next month.

The Vault #1

Written by Sam Sarkar
Art by Garrie Gastonny

These days, I'm willing to give just about any new Image book a shot, as they've had such a great track record lately, and I thought this book looked intriguing when I leafed through it in the store.

It's about a group of treasure hunters and archaeologists who are convinced that there is some valuable treasure in a water-filled pit on Sable Island in Nova Scotia.  They have a lot of high-tech equipment, although not enough to retrieve it, and have to bring in some other dude, who has a robotic diving dog thing, although they don't want to pay his price.

It's sort of established that they are working against the clock, because of an impending hurricane (how often does that happen in Nova Scotia?), and there is a strange supernatural element to this story, as hinted at in the first few pages, and then mysteriously revealed at the very end.

I feel like this comic has a lot of problems.  To begin with, it took me a while at the beginning to get a grasp of what's going on.  It's hard to understand what makes this particular dive so different, and why it requires such amazing technology.  The biggest problem with this book is the hurricane though.  In a classic example of tell, don't show, we know there's a hurricane coming because the characters keep talking about how worried they are about it, and how it's going to wreck their communications with the mainland, but it doesn't seem to materialize in any way that matches the amount of concern on display.  It seems they have to abandon their boat, but have plenty of time to bring up treasure chests.  There is also the concern that other people may come and take their treasure, but they don't explain how these other people would have the needed tech...

There's some stuff to like here - especially Gastonny's clear pencils, but I don't think there's enough.  Even though that last page really caught my interest, I'm not sure if I'll be back for more.