Postal #16
Publisher: Top Cow
Writer: Bryan Edward Hill
Artist: Isaac Goodhart
Colorist: K. Michael Russell
Cover: Linda Sejic
The final chapter in this arc opens up with one hell of a back and forth between Laura and her son, Mark. It’s time to go to war and with the stakes being as high as they are she’s not too happy with having to sit this one out. So in cold, pragmatic fashion she lays out what needs to happen in order for Mark and his chosen few to come out of this victorious. But not before Mark offers some plain truth of his own so his mother fully understands where he stands in all of this.
It’s this type of character driven intensity that Hill has continued to excell in and has made Postal such a thrill to read. The pacing of this issue was one of the key points that helped the action sequence have quite the impact while giving us a reason to actually care if some of these characters make it out of this alive. The dynamic between Rowan and Curtis was an interesting one and ended up being both satisfying while also a little too neatly wrapped up. Maybe it’s because there’s a huge part of Rowan’s life Hill just can’t add to the narrative without slowing the story down but what does happen is a positive moment in a pretty violent issue. Though Hill also hints that things are still quite dangerous in Eden in those last few pages as he closes out strong.
Isaac Goodhart and K. Michael Russel carry the narrative in stellar fashion once again. You feel the tonal shift in the conversation as soon as Laura flicks that cigarette and you see her facial expression. Goodhart nails the subtle body language that really puts that entire sequence over and enhances the drama. He builds the action from panel to panel and we get a brutal and bloody payoff as we see what Maggie can do with a shotgun! With Russell’s colors adding plenty of weight and just enhancing the visuals. He also makes this last two panels creepy as hell and helps bring that worried feeling right back in the end.
Everything about Postal is what any comic fan looking to spend their money on should be picking up. It’s suspense and thrills with characters that walk in those grey areas and kick ass in each issue. So if you’re asking if you should start reading Postal, I can only quote Maggie from this issue and say: “Goddamn right!”.
Infinite Speech
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