Bizarre New World: Population Explosion (Graphic Novel) – Review

By Skipper Martin (writer), Christopher Provencher (Art), Wes Dzioba (Colors)

I guess I should have read the back cover first. You see, the synopsis on the back cover states that Paul Krutcher, the world’s first flying man, is no longer alone in the sky and must negotiate the insanity of everybody suddenly gaining the ability of flight to make a mad dash from California to Arizona in response to a desperate, teary phone call from his son. Unfortunately, what I didn’t get from the story is where Paul was going in his desperation. We see him race home and we see him pack for a trip, but at no point do we get a simple “I’ve got to get to Arizona,” which would have been a big help. Maybe if you’ve read this title before you knew the details of Paul’s personal life, but a new reader wouldn’t, unless, as I said, you looked at the back cover first.

Unfortunately, Paul’s race home and his race out of town seemed quite a bit repetitive. The book has several pages of Paul flying or driving in earnest while people are flying haphazardly all around him. The sequences serve to paint the picture of chaos that ensues when all of humanity suddenly takes flight, but there was not enough variety to keep me interested and the sequence seemed overly long. Ultimately, Paul reunites with his son and the story turns into in rumination on what it means to be different.

Paul is a likable enough main character, a simple, everyday Joe trying to find his place in the world and obviously a good guy with his heart in the right place. Despite the presence of a likable main character, there is just not enough in this book to really grab me and insure that I’ll come back for more. (Grade: C)

– Arthur Cooke

A Second Opinion

Like Paul’s character, I felt cheated when it was revealed that all humans were gaining the ability of flight (Bizarre New World #2, #3). It was like everything unique and special about this book was taken away; all the long, expository conversations and visual narratives were for nothing. Unfortunately, with all the magic taken away, Population Explosion feels like a train that’s lost its steam.

The story of this graphic novel is spread out over 48 pages and is paced similarly as the previous issues. I was hoping, given the new direction of this series, that things would open up and give us a bigger picture of how the world has changed, but we only see it through the eyes of Paul, who has become a man of words and not action.

The conversations about flight and how these powers will affect the world are discussed, but they honestly just feel like any conversation you’d hear from people at a comic convention. After a while, it all becomes stale – we’ve heard these discussions before. The only real meat to this story is Paul’s race home to find his son. It’s a plot thread that works, but could have been resolved so much sooner. I wanted more from this book, but the pace of this series just hasn’t picked up for me. (Grade: C)

– J. Montes

Bizarre New World #1 – Review

By Skipper Martin (writer), Christopher Provencher (art), Wes Dzioba (colors)

Bizarre New World is another one of those, what I like to call “reality super hero” books. It’s when the creators take a very ordinary person living in modern times, give him powers, and let the rest play out. Mark Millar’s Kick-Ass is another book in similar vein (though a bit more on the extreme side). With Bizarre New World, everything is subtle and more grounded.

The story’s premise is a simple one. Paul Krutcher is your average joe working as a programmer (or editor) at a movie studio in Los Angeles. He’s divorced, has a son whom he gets to see every once in a while, and lives a painfully normal life. Then one day, out of the blue, Paul discovers he can fly. From there, the rest of the issue revolves around his discovery, testing his limitations, and basically just trying to figure out if he’s got any other powers.

Skipper Martin (who Paul is modeled after), writes a very believable person with Paul. His mannerisms and reactions are genuine. It also helps that he’s a like-able guy. Much of the credit has to go to penciler Christopher Provencher who’s been burdened with the task of making this story work. I’d say a third of this book is completely silent with Paul just flying around and seeing what he can do. Provencher not only pulls off his storytelling with flying colors (no pun intended), but the expressions he puts on Paul’s face hammer home the array of emotions he’s feeling.

Weighing in at a hefty 48 pages for only $3.50, Bizarre New World is well worth your money. It’s an origin story that reads very quickly, but you’ll also stop every once in a while just to take in the art. It’s not flashy by any means, but the storytelling is done masterfully. I caught one grammar error in the book, but hey, no one’s perfect. And someone get Provencher an inker, his stuff would look so much better! (Grade: A)