Written by: Warren Ellis
Art by: Jason Howard
Publisher: Image
There isn’t much to say about Trees that hasn’t been said before. While issue #4 is easily the strongest issue of the series, it still has massive flaws. There’s definitely good content here, and this book could, very easily, be so much more than it is. I actually find it hard not to get mad at this comic, because it’s so frustrating. Nothing ever seems to go anywhere, and there’s no overarching plot. You could just take it as a character study, and in that case, you may really enjoy this book. If nothing else, the characters are actually quite interesting. But no matter how interesting they may be, they simply don’t go anywhere. Sure, there’s some minor character development in this issue, but there’s nothing to keep readers engaged with this book because there’s no plot.
In this issue, we follow the stories of three different sets of characters in three different cities. We’ve already been introduced to these characters, though we didn’t see any of them in the previous issue. The fact that Warren Ellis has cut it down to three cities an issue is great, because trying to cram seven or eight different sets of characters into a single issue didn’t do the book any favors. The issue kicks off in China, following Tian, an art student who moved to a new city in the first issue. His character is interesting enough, an introvert struggling to find his place in a bustling city. Sure, it’s kind of cliched, but Ellis’ writing of the character makes this excusable. From here, we jump to the arctic, where Marsh (a scientist) seems to be going crazy. This is easily the weakest part of the issue. Not only is there no engaging plot here, but the weakest characters are the scientists. Then we got to Paris, and meet up with Malek, the reporter who interviewed the African dictator in the last issue. It’s here that we get the only shred of a plot.
The last couple of pages actually offer up the first suspenseful moment in this entire book, the only time where I’ve ever felt like I really need to pick up the next issue. Other than that one moment, nothing really happens in this issue. Sure, it’s most definitely a slow burn book, but that doesn’t excuse the fact that this is the fourth issue in a row where almost nothing has happened. Trees is still readable, and it has a few elements that make up for its largest flaw. It runs the risk of feeling dull and boring, but is never quite thrown over the line, fortunately.
