No/One #4 // Review
Senator Noah Kemp wants to change things. He’s been a victim of doxxing. He’s been physically attacked by people for political reasons. He’s calling a press conference to introduce Proposition 87. It would allow the people of Pittsburgh to proactively act in self-defense. One of those in the audience suggests that it’s a license to kill. It’s also the beginning of No/One #4. Writers Kyle Higgins and Brian Buccellato continue a crime action thriller that is drawn to the page by artist Geraldo Borges. The atmosphere of the story is cast over the visuals by colorist Mark Englert.
“Jim” has gotten pretty far into his investigation. It’s a bogus name that he’s using to try to find information on the copycat killer. Maybe if things go right, he can begin to track down the identity of the helmeted vigilante known as No/One. Meanwhile, Julia is having problems with her mother. Julia’s investigation almost got her killed, and now her mother is writing op-eds and attacking her on a podcast. No/One is attacking things in a completely different way as the police are in pursuit. It’s a narrow escape as the conflict gets just a bit more complicated.
Higgins and Buccellato move the issue around to a few different locations that strategically advance the plot in different ways. The drama runs the risk of overpowering the format in a number of different scenes, but the momentum of the conflict carries the issue through some of the more dialogue-heavy moments. The comic book format is served in a variety of different forms, whether it’s locking in the feel of a prison as “Jim” visits his son or establishing the posh residential setting for the conversation between Julia and her mother. The action sequence at the end of the issue serves as a nice closer for a fun drama.
Borges’s delivery of the nocturnal action at issue’s end is beautiful. The action moves across the page with a deft precision...every movement is well-executed. Every panel feels like it’s captured at just the right moment to create a fluid action sequence with no unnecessary embellishment. The atmosphere of the more drama-heavy conversations between characters is amplified quite a bit by Englert’s colors, which cast a poignant gravity on the street-level drama. From conversation to action, the issue solidly moves the plot ahead as the mystery continues.
Higgins and Buccellato engage the comic book format in a way that almost keeps it from completely embracing it. So much of the drama would feel that much more at home on stage or screen. The story isn’t quite serving the comics medium by focusing as much as it does on mysteries that take place largely off-page. That being said, there are aspects of the story that could only work in comic book format, so there definitely IS enough to keep the story firmly planted on page and panel. It is a compelling story...it just seems to be a story that’s looking for a different format.
