Whispers #2
Words and art by Joshua Luna
Reviewed by Steve Seigh
Things are getting pretty intense for Sam. Not only is he able to astral project himself into the city in which he resides, but he can also hear the thoughts and influence the actions of those closest to him. In this issue of Joshua Luna’s Whispers #2 we get to delve a little deeper into Sam’s new found abilities, as well as make a new friend, Cali. See, the thing about writing a review for anything penned by either one of the Luna Brothers, is that it’s rather difficult to talk about the books at all without spoiling something for those who have not yet had the opportunity to check them out. I’ve found that like all of their work that has come before Whispers, that each issue ups the anti in ways of character development, mystery, as well as intrigue. For what it’s worth, I would venture to say that they are my favorite team working in the business today.
With that being said … what you need to understand about Whispers is that this is the story of something truly extraordinary happening to someone who may very well not be “all there” mentally. And it’s because of this character dynamic that the situations inside these pages are heightened to a level that I enjoy them more than your average comic book read. One of the crowning achievements about Joshua Luna‘s work in regard to Whispers is that the characters speak the way any one of your friends would in real life. Both myself and my fellow Talking Comics compatriot, Bob Reyer, agree that often times writers forfeit lengthy dialogue bubbles for the sake of wrapping up their ideas for a more compartmentalized presentation. I personally think that this is cheating us (as comic book readers who pay good money for these stories) of opportunities to see our favorite writers really stretch their wings. The trade off of “realistic” dialogue as opposed to something you can easily quote has become somewhat of the norm in comic books (perhaps due to the short attention spans of today’s youth?) and I find that all it amounts to is a lesser reading experience.
VERDICT
So should you buy Whispers #2? Hell yes, you should! In fact, you should search around your local shops for a copy of Whispers #1 and enjoy them both. Because with stories like Ultra: Seven Days, Girls, The Sword, and now Whispers, the Luna Brothers track record doesn’t have a single scratch on it and you’d be cheating yourself out of what very well might be one of the best books on the market today.
