4 out of 5

Like the classic 80s and 90s comics from which Michel Fiffe draws much inspiration, Copra leans toward the fast and the furious – there are like 4 different good / bad teams of characters squabbling in a non-stop battle across these issues – and is arguably at its best when Fiffe is flexing that style to its fullest.

Which isn’t meant to be dismissive of the writing: besides the visuals, a huge chunk of my joy when reading this book is how deep its roster and storylines have gotten; Fiffe has gotten better and better at mastering that old school Marvel drop-in / drop-out balance where you successfully recap within a page or panel for newbies, but then let your soap opera explode in your remaining 20ish pages.

That said: there’s still a balance between this and the creator’s more indie, arty impulses: occasionally things are so stylized I’m not positive what’s happening; and more commonly, the Copra saga is told in a way where I feel like I need to reread everything that came before, only to realize I haven’t been told some info yet. This isn’t a bad loop – I generally finish a reread when a new arc ends – but it can be a little unsatisfying.

This is more minor than it may sound, though, as the writer’s overall storytelling has grown in leaps and bounds, such that you can soak up and massively enjoy these pages, even with lingering “what is going on?” questions. I truly can’t believe the artistry on these pages – the one-man act of arting and colors – and to that latter bit, again Fiffe has one-upped himself, nailing a line between pop colors and psychedelia that works extremely well with his style.

Copra 42 – 45 is the series at its best: tons of action, tons of creativity, and sprinkles of story that keeps things moving in a graspable way while tossing in new (if sometimes incomprehensible) wrinkles. This is what the series has always been, but it’s been awesome seeing Michel continually zero in on an idealized version of it.