Animal Man #24

Writer Jeff Lemire Artist Rafael Albuquerque

 

Introduction

 

Animal Man has struggled to capture my attention after Rotworld. Each issue seems to make modest strides towards getting me still interested, but the idea of me not loving the current series featuring the Baker family is downright frustrating. To be fair, last issue featured a nice twist among the council of totems by Lemire. Still, If the next phase of the story does not kick in soon, perhaps the title would be better served with a different writer on board to give the series new life. The usual art of Steve Pugh and occasionally Francis Portela have been exceedingly lovely, despite some poor choices in narrative. Pugh drew Animal Man in the 80’s and has a great grasp on how the character should look. The artist seems to be leaving soon for the All-New Invaders title just announced at Marvel. In the meantime, we are given the distinct treat of Rafael Albuquerque delivering his fresh style of pencils to this installment. The American Vampire artist is one of the best in the entire industry, and deserves to be followed anywhere he goes for the visual buffet that he provides. With the sure to be amazing pencils, can the author make readers interested in the story again?

 

Writer

 

The corruption of the red has been the major theme of the book since the crossover storyline. After the reveal last issue, the red is reeling from a tragic sense of loss. As touching as the story is, a moment with Maxine reeling from the death of Cliff reinforces one thing. Why even kill him in the first place? Several issues later there still does not seem to be a good answer to the question. A different question is answered regarding the safety of Maxine that justifies the danger Buddy has put her in. Buddy and Ellen have a nice moment that shifts the book in another direction. Animal Man is once again trying to fix the problems that it has suffered from the last few installments. This arc has made the biggest headway towards fixing bad story decisions made in the last half dozen or comics.

 

Artist

 

What can be said about Albuquerque that has not been said elsewhere. This is yet another Brazilian artist tearing the pages of comic books in half. His scratchy line work channels something so incredibly precise that most interior artists dream of. The best thing about him, is that his pencils are still monthly. He has worked on an admirable amount of American Vampire issues in succession. For those who are not convinced on his wonderful qualities, take a look at the first panel on page five. There is a wonderfully expressive panel with all of the different totems to compare and contrast to Animal Man himself. Another stirring moment are the different pirate animals that are drawn in such a wonderfully unique fashion. They look bright, when compared to the sinister looking totems. The artist lays out another page that features bright spots of color stirring up lovely emotion.

Conclusion

Animal Man #24 makes some good decisions that put the title back on track towards quality. Rafael Albuquerque is the main draw, but Lemire is making some headway.