CARRIERS #4, from Red 5 Comics on April 6th, 2022, pits the Carriers against the Parliament of Owls for the right to protect the city. What can the Carriers do when the Owls resort to extreme measures against the threat of the Hawks?
The Details
- Written By: Ben Ferrari, Erica Heflin, Jay Huwer
- Art By: Jason Kimble
- Colors By: Jason Kimble
- Letters By: Micah Myers
- Cover Art By: Elias Martins, Jorge Cortes
- Cover Price: $3.95
- Release Date: April 6, 2022
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Was It Good?
Have you ever played the game called “Telephone”? That’s the game where a group of players lines up in a row. The first person is given a phrase that they have to whisper to the person next to them, and in turn, the second player has to turn and whisper that same phrase to the third player. This continues down the line until the phrase is whispered to the last player. The goal is to see if the last player can repeat the phrase exactly as it was given to the first player, and invariably, the words get jumbled or misheard to the point that the phrase repeated by the last player frequently sounds nothing like it should. It’s a test of listening and reciting with humorous results.
The Carriers series reads and looks like the comic version of “Telephone”. Each issue has a different artist that seems intent on drawing the main characters with a different look and style. Besides the setting of the big city and the main characters, the issue starts as though this is an arc but the start of one issue has little connection to the previous one. Particularly in this issue, the Parliament of Owls comes out of nowhere but speaks and acts as if they’ve been waging a war with the hawks in the same city as the Carriers for generations. It makes little sense, and this issue gets a down mark for completely fumbling the concept of continuity, both in writing and art.
If you look past the botched continuity of the arc, this issue (in isolation) is serviceable. The Owls claim dominance as protectors of the city against the Hawks, resorting to killing without hesitation. The Carriers are opposed to killing, so we wind up with a Batman-vs-Punisher type of conflict where groups on the same side become enemies over their respective methods. The conflict gets surprisingly heated at times, and this issue gets credit for keeping you guessing as to how it will all play out.
Most of the issue is posturing and threats between the two groups. The dialog is filled with tense anger, so this issue excels at projecting emotion.
When the violence comes, it’s swift and brutal. Kimble does a decent job of carrying the story, albeit with rough transitions that don’t flow from one page to the next cleanly.
Keep scrolling for a closer look at the covers, or Click Here to jump right to the story description with some spoilers.
What’s It About?
[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]
You may want to check out the previous adventure of the Carriers by reading our CARRIERS #3 review.
We begin with the Carriers watching the Watchmen film… for some reason.
Suddenly (and without transition or warning), the Carriers are in the sky in an aerial dogfight against a Hawk who injured Dove off-panel. As the Carriers close in to capture the Hawk, Owls appear to intercede in the fight. The Owls quickly capture and kill the Hawk. The death spurs an argument between the Carriers and Ols over the right way to handle invading Hawks, but they agree to put their differences aside to get Dove medical attention back at the Parliament HQ.
There, the Owl leader fills the Carriers in on a generations-old war between Hawks and Owls that was eventually settled with a single-combat duel, declaring Owls the victor. Unfortunately, tensions have remained and the Owls have adopted a “zero-tolerance” policy against any Hawk incursions into the city. Once Dove recovers enough to travel, Carriers and Owls resume their bickering with escalating tension.
Once outside, tensions boil over. We conclude the issue with brutal fighting, hostage-taking, and a retreat to fight another day.
Keep scrolling for a closer look at preview images of the internal pages, or Click Here to jump right to the score.
Final Thoughts
CARRIERS #4 is a mildly disappointing entry in the series with antagonists that come out of nowhere and have little connection to the previous issue, art that’s wildly inconsistent from the previous issues, and a story that relies on developments that haven’t happened yet.
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