Apologies for the lack of posts. There has been a pandemic going on and I've been busy building my own personal blog at eric-hebert.ca
It was the cover that drew me in. It looked steampunk to me but I've heard the series described as dieselpunk which is similar in that it's "retro futuristic" but instead of being informed by the Victorian era it takes its technology cues and attitudes from the 1930's to 1950's.
I've always been drawn to the aesthetics and technology of the WWII era and the rest of the 1940's. So this looked like fun.
The series has been around since the 1980's and continues on today. This particular book was in a mini hardcover format that I also found interesting and prompted me to buy it. I only wish the other two books in the first cycle were available in the same format, they would look very nice on my bookshelf.
The stories are all loosely connected around a singular event, that of an alien virus spreading throughout the world killing many and giving others "powers" that could be described as super or meh. Some survivors were made heroic, others villains and still others merely shlubs.
Think of the X-Men to get a feel of the super-powers folks develop.
Each story was a delight to read and did not just tell the story of some conflict but also delved into the consequences of being changed by the Wildcard Virus. There is a humanity, humour and pulpy fun to the stories.
I found this book a delight to read as it offered a timely subject (the virus) but also charged the stories with fun. I felt that we can get through this fight with COVID-19 in much the same way as the characters deal with their virus, by coping and adjusting to it.
Recommended for a bit of escapism in a comic book way that does not take itself too seriously.
