Written by: Ryan Burton
Art by: John Bivens
Publisher: Image
The second issue of Dark Engine is very, very different from its debut issue. Obviously, it has the same creative team and follows the same plot. However, aside from Sym, who is only present for a few pages, none of the characters we met in the previous issue show up here. And, in contrast with the endless violence in the previous issue of the series, this issue has almost none of that. In fact, there’s really only one page that has any form of violence in it, and it’s actually quite brief. So, where the first issue grabbed me with a high velocity issue long action scene, this issue is enjoyable for, pretty much, completely different reasons.
Possibly the best thing about this issue paring back the pace from Dark Engine #1 is that we get to see artist John Bivens draw something aside from action scenes. He really gets to flex his pencilling muscles in this issue, as we go through a variety of locales. Everything about his art is gorgeous, and he really makes the world come to life. For a comic book artist who really hasn’t done anything before, this is some stellar work. It has elements of quite a few big name artists – you can see hints of Samnee, Burnham, and more in his art – but Bivens adds a unique flair to it that it makes it more than just the sum of its parts.
Unlike the first issue, this issue is very dialogue heavy. There’s a lot of talking, and very little of it is exposition. Generally, that would be a bad thing, but a little exposition would be much appreciated, if just to get a better understanding of what exactly is going on. From what I’ve gathered, the plot follows Sym, a time traveling warrior powered by the Dark Engine, which was created by someone called the Alchemist. Using the Dark Engine, Sym is meant to put a stop to a series of events that lead to the apocalypse, but unfortunately, she’s wound up in Ancient Egypt. It’s actually kind of amusing seeing the purpose she serves to her captors, who misinterpreted her as one of their gods.
Unfortunately, this issue does very little to advance the plot. Sym gets a surprising amount of character development, despite her uttering a single line and only appearing on two pages. Bivens’ art really gets a lot across about the character. In addition, the post apocalyptic world, where the Alchemist’s Tower exists, is a very interesting setting, one that I am enticed by. I would love to see more, as everything we’ve seen there has been some of the best material this comic has to offer. The issue ends in a similar manner to the first issue, and one would hope that this new time that Sym has travelled too will do more to progress the plot than her time in Egypt did.
The bottom line with this series is that it feels like it would read better in trade format. It feels like it’s being written with the trade in mind. This isn’t a bad thing, it’s just an observation.
