A Thing Called Truth #2

A Thing Called Truth #2

Image Comics 2021

Written & Lettered by Iolanda Zanfardino

Illustrated by Elisa Romboli

Doctor Mag discovers that stepping outside your comfort zone for one night can lead to absurd consequences. Like waking up to find yourself in another country, having been kidnapped by an attractive woman while sleeping off the night before in your car. But is that a bad thing?

This issue we get to see Dorian’s backstory and she ended up driving Mag’s car in Italy of all places. It is a really cute issue and while we don’t see much about the whole reason the Doc tied one on the night before, yes I am looking forward to all the chase scenes that span the European Continent, that’s okay we’re spending time getting to know these women better and how this adventure is going to change their lives as well as prepare them for what’s hot on their heels. The circumstances as to why Dorian is there in the first place is really sad and I was hoping that something like this wouldn’t happen. I mean after all Faust is kind of a cutie. There is a lot going on here and it’s fun, quirky and it really is something that both women need and they need to do it together, they’ve already met and bonded on a strange level and this is brand new territory for them both.

I really do like the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information are presented exceedingly well. The character development that we see through the narration, the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how we see them act and react to the situations and circumstances which they encounter does an amazing job in continuing to flesh out their personalities. The pacing is excellent and as it takes us through the page establishing the girls' relationship and providing some backstory draws us even further into their lives.

I am thoroughly enjoying the way that we see this being structured and how the layers within the story continue to emerge, grow, evolve and strengthen. I am also enjoying the way that these layers open up new avenues to be explored. Both their backstories or their burgeoning friendship even how they ended up in Italy all of this adds so much depth, dimension and complexity to the story. How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward are impeccably handled.

The interiors here are absolutely delightful. The linework is clean, crisp and strong while the varying weights and techniques are being utilised to create the detail within the work that we see is fantastic. I am a huge fan of the way that we see backgrounds being utilised, not only to enhance and expand the moments but also how they work within the composition of the panels to bring out the depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkably talented eye for storytelling. The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work shows a nice eye for how colour works.

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Part of me wishes we’d have at least gotten one page on the scientists who stole Mag’s work and are wondering where she’s gone. At least keep us up to date on what they are up to or thinking ya know because it’s a huge part of the story here. Otherwise everything we see here does a magnificent job in really allowing us to get to know the girls so much better. The writing is solid and interesting, the characterisation is delightful and thoughtful while the interiors here are really good solid comic book style artwork.