5 out of 5

This is amazing comic work.  While there were a couple of beats to the story for which I was initially planning to dock a star, Arcudi so masterfully wrangles some huge plot elements in the last two issues – big, booming strokes that many an accomplished writer has failed at doing well, even with more words and pictures – that those minor grievances are pretty much demolished.  Like a lot of major indie books these days (meaning our now high profile indie publishers like Dark Horse or Image), Rumble has had quite a bit of time between arcs, and sometimes between issues.  But, as I’ve elsewhere said, if the results are the solid storytelling and insanely awesome art that we’re getting, then by golly, it’s worth the wait.  (…Even if maybe that wait makes me forget some details by the time I get around to reading it.)

This third Rumble arc primarily serves to “resolve” the Rathraq / body conundrum, i.e. how long can we create justifications for Rath to remain a scarecrow?  The placement of this question and (for now) answer is evidence of Arcudi’s writerly chops and experience: This is, to me, is the logical end point to the first over-arching plotline – which has included introductions, origins, and now a status quo shift that establishes a required new direction thereafter – and so I can imagine many a’writer offering this beat up first, shushing the character building out to later issues, or, alternately, extending it out ’til way further along, a dangling carrot.  Not that either way couldn’t work, but I found the pacing to get to this point immensely satisfying, and perhaps accountable for why John can drop some bold story moves into just a few short panels, as the build-up and sense of narrative stakes have been woven effectively woven in and maintained as topical; we don’t need to be overly shown or told or reminded why these events matter.

There were, as mentioned, some bits that caused my reviewer-senses to tingle.  One issue concludes with the intriguing and potentially hilarious setup of Rathraq (and Del) being thrown in jail.  While the offense in question wasn’t intended to kick off some Oz prison epic, it did seem like we were going to at least get a funny aside of a night behind bars.  Instead (spoiler…), the matter is resolved within a panel or so in the following issue.  While I suspect Arcudi may have nixed or avoided extending this part of the story exactly because it would have too clearly been an aside, the quick wrap-up stands in contrast to the punctuated, issue-closing setup.  A similar maybe-after-the-fact change comes from a bit of soul-switching that’s a key part of the arc.  It seems very clear who’s in whose body, including dialogue spoken aloud indicating as such, but then characters right in panel while that stuff is being said seem ambivalent too it.  A couple of issues later Arcudi speaks to the confusion, but it feels slipped in, like an editorial miss later corrected.  Who knows.  Either way, the fact that John is able to mostly course correct both of these hiccups – not bogging down the story to backpedal but not ignoring them – is,  again, a sign of his skill, and again again, the overall impact of the story washes it away.

…Which I keep off-hand mentioning like I’m going to speak to it eventually.  One piece of it is the arc’s conclusion, so I won’t (womp), except in how I’ve mentioned above: a game-changer, but one that feels fully earned by the narrative, and is told / shown in a perfectly concise fashion.  The other big piece comes into effect in the issues’ big-ass final fight, stretching over the last two books.  Big-ass final fights ain’t no thang in comics… Except when they’re actually integral to the story.  And in Rumble, the way the dynamic shifts several times during the fight, and what that says about Rathraq, is the definition of ‘integral.’ And most importantly, it makes the impact of that final scene all the greater.

I’m of course not even touching on the rest of the fantastic character work done here for Bobby, Timah, Asura and Lerna, because I’ve already blabbed enough for you to get the point.  (Right?)

So let’s shift to praising… The art and colors.  Harren and Stewart’s work on this book has been nothing short of phenomenal.  As I’ve gotten better (I think) at understanding a colorist’s role, while Stewart’s name is everywhere, of the books I’m reading to which he’s attached, I haven’t seen his work feel so indelibly tied to the ‘feeling’ of the story.  The tale’s general sense of loss and isolation that’s juxtaposed with the crazy character design and humor is visible in every panel, and a due portion of that is thanks to Stewart’s balance of colors – of when to stick with flats, when to blend, how poppy pop colors should be, and etcetera.  The other due, of course, is to Harren, who is letting loose in the best of ways.  In a recent interview with Farel Dalrymple in Study Group Magazine, he speaks to drawing from what you see versus sticking strictly to learned perspectives and whatnot; I’ve heard similar suggestions from others, to essentially ask whether something looks right, and not whether it is ‘technically’ right.  It always puzzles me, then, when seasoned dudes turn in pages or panels where something just looks… off.  And maybe it’s an inker, or a colorist, and maybe it’s a lack of time, or even a lack of skill with some particular pose or something, but regardless, it happens.  I diverted to this to obviously make the opposite statement with Harren and Rumble: He’s so variable with his look for characters and action, sometimes looser, sometimes fine-lined, sometimes more realistic, sometimes only vaguely so.  And it always look right.  There are several sequences with Timah in this arc that slip between more fantastical and more naturalistic, shadow heavy, and the transitions are seamless, and perfectly synced with the script.  The monsters also remain a constant thrill; a lot of monster drawin’ dudes – Brian Churilla, Eric Powell – have a style that defines most of their designs, but Harren’s creatures are continually invwntive, with new favorites emerging often.

Lastly (but nowhere near leastly), I’ve probably certainly mentioned Rumble’s multi-faceted lettering (by Joe Sabino) before.  So I’ll mention it again, and how well it sits on the page and also underlines the tone.

…Did I forget anything?

If anyone is mourning the loss of Arcudi to the BPRD world, I hope you’ve joined up here and told all of your friends.  I would love to see another huge universe get the opportunity to exist via John’s talents, much supported by a crew fully working on the same wavelength.