Barbarella #4

Barbarella #4

Dynamite Entertainment 2021

Written by Sarah Hoyt

Illustrated by Madibek Musabekov

Coloured by Ivan Nunes

Lettered by Carlos M. Mangual

Having come face-to-shocking face with the identity of her would-be assassin, Barbarella’s quest has turned from merely combatting tyranny to one of survival! How handy that the two quests amount to one and the same. Barbarella and Vix follow the trail to Automata, a factory world populated solely by worker drones, which begs the question: do androids dream of electric freedom?

I’m loving this series. It isn’t the easiest thing in the world to convey that Barbarella oozes sex appeal, the visuals are good but it’s the writing alongside the interiors that really bring us the whole package. The dialogue, the narration and more alongside a certain facial expression can change something from innocent to flirtatious in a matter of seconds and it’s knowing how to do this as well as the collaboration between writer and artist that makes this so effective. I also like that this story engages the reader so we go off page and into our own minds and imagination as we look for answers or explanations as to what we see here. I’m also hoping that this is going to be extended past its initial run because it’s just too gosh darn good to let end anytime soon, unless of course there are more arcs lined up behind this one then that’s okay.

I’m loving the way that this is being told. The story & plot development we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well. The character development that we see through the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how we see them act and react to the situations and circumstances which they encounter does a magnificent job in bringing their personalities to the forefront. The pacing is excellent and as it takes us through the pages revealing more of the story the more we want to see and know.

I greatly appreciate the way that we see this being structured and how the layers within the story continue to emerge, grow, evolve and strengthen. Personally I also like the way the layers within the story open up new avenues to be explored while old ones, avenues, are in the midst of being explored and what this does is add some great depth, dimension and complexity. How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward is immaculately rendered.

The interiors here are utterly gorgeous. The linework is phenomenal and how we see the varying weights and techniques being utilised to create this level & quality of detail within the work throughout is outstanding. We see some stellar use of backgrounds throughout the book as they enhance and expand the moments while also working 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 itself. The attention to detail whether it is in the characters or the backgrounds is stunning to see. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show such a masterful eye for storytelling. The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work shows a brilliant eye for how colour works.

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I love this series for so many different reasons and while I’m fascinated by Taln it’s Vix that is the scene stealer with it’s dry British humour that I am such a fan of. There is no denying that Barabarella is an iconic character and thanks to Dynamite I barely feel as if we’ve scratched the surface of her potential. So far she’s been chasing an evil version of herself and seems to use her skills, wit, charm and smarts to avoid being killed, captured or harmed in any way. Thanks to how we see this excellent writing and amazing characterisation alongside these stunning interiors are among the main reasons we want to see this series keep going and going.