This Wednesday, Brian Azzarello, Maria Llovet, and Andworld Design continue their tale of Faith’s rise in stardom through questionable means in BOOM! Studio’s Faithless II #1.
It’s been about a year since the first part of Faithless wrapped up, so refresh yourself with Darryll Robson’s reviews here! Then support your LCS and pick it up.
Faithless II #1 is for mature readers, so make sure you know that before jumping in. However, you need the background from Faithless, so that should come as a given.
FAITHLESS II #1 AND THE DAUNTING CANVAS
Azzarello reintroduces the cast we’ve gotten familiar with by having each interact with Faith, thus showing how they’ve progressed. Yet it doesn’t seem like it’s been that long since the previous story, as Faith is still getting called “the next big thing.” That and Faith feels like the character we left in the previous serious, still confused and not sure of herself. Instead of having her feeling confidant, she still doubts herself constantly; this is shown with a simple narrative—a blank paint canvas.
The blank paint canvas that haunts Faith throughout the first issue is great; it shows how she feels she still lacks something. Instead of skipping ahead, Azzarello continues at a slow, steady pace, showing that she is still evolving. The many changes Faith went through in Faithless was the highlight, and it seems Azzarello knows that, as she still has a way to go. Nonetheless, changes happen when Solomon enters the picture. Solomon was introduced in Faithless, yet was never delved into. It seems like he’ll play into Faith’s further transformation down the line.
A VISUAL TREAT
Faithless was a visual treat with a lot of the story riding on Llovet’s art, the same can be said on Faithless II #1. Not only does Llovet’s style perfectly fit Azzarello’s tale, but it also heightens it. This ability to take the story up a notch stems from her European art form, with uneven lines and styles of panel. Albeit her characters are emotional and her ability to showcase realistic feelings is great, her backgrounds are just as amazing. During some scenes, Llovet’s backgrounds are cluttered, showing the business of that location. While other locations are void, helping showcase the foreground. It helps that this genre is one Llovet transcends at.
However, her art isn’t the only phenomenal aspect, as her colors and fashion sense works wonders. This detail for fashion can be seen in her other works as well. Nonetheless, her colors fit the narrative quite well. Her color palette is subtle and realistic. At times Llovet will employ brighter colors, yet at no time does it outshine what is transpiring. Another neat aspect of her colors is how at times, they flow outside of the lines. In Faithless II #1, you’ll find objects and panels that include colors that aren’t in the pencils lines. It’s a small detail, yet simply beautiful.
WORDS OF PASSION
There are a few moments in Faithless II #1 where Llovet includes hand-drawn sound effects. When these occur, they look magnificent and later on help portray a great visual moment. Be that as it may, Andworld Design’s lettering is wonderful when teamed with Llovet’s art and Azzarello’s story. The word bubbles and font style seems to be more freehand then not, with Andworld Design changing the dimensions of the bubbles when needed. The font style used not only makes the story feel more realistic but is gorgeous to boot.
FAITHLESS II #1 CONCLUSION
Although there are some fun character moments in Faithless II #1 the reintroductions of the characters don’t do as well as their initial introductions. Nonetheless, Llovet’s art continues to be drop-dead gorgeous with Andworld Design’s lettering helping tell the story. If you enjoyed the first series, then you’ll want to check out the follow-up.
Fun Fact: Llovet does her comic work digitally.
