Writer: Rick Remender
Artists: Greg Tocchini
Colors: Dave McCaig
Rick Remender and Greg Tocchini finally return to the deep depths of the ocean with Low #16. Low is an ambitious story of human survival on the ocean floors after the surface of the Earth became unlivable due to radiation from the death of our sun. Low is also the story of Hope; hope for survival, hope for family, and hope for the human race.
Its been some time since the release of Low #15, 6 months to be accurate, and where we left off was a hell of a cliffhanger. Stel and Zem had reached the surface in pursuit of a returned space probe that may show a path to a habitable world for the human race. Stel and Zem were shocked to find life flourishing, just not human life as the radiation had evolved insect and animal life. Yet their return to the surface world has not gone well for our protagonists and when Low #15 wrapped up they were either on the verge of salvation or damnation. Yet if you pick up Low #16 expecting a resolution then think again.
Low #16 takes us pack to the gladiatorial pits of the pirate city of Poluma, one of the domed human cities on the bottom of the ocean. Poluma is where our heroine Stel and her son Marik ended up in Volume One, Low: Delirium of Hope. Low #16 takes us back to these early days of the city and focuses on Marik as he preaches Hope to his comrades while continually fighting for their lives for the entertainment of their captors. I was disappointed that the issue was a flashback as I really wanted to discover the fate of Stel and Zem, but like most of his books I trust Remender and even though this issue is a story of the past the characters here are no doubt going to impact the future of Low.
Low is a wonderful book that should be on everyone’s pull list. Rick Remender is a master of his craft and although Deadly Class is probably his most personal story Low is his most ambitious. Personally I was disappointed in the long hiatus but when I looked at Low #16 and saw how beautiful the Greg Tocchini art is I completely understand the delay as this book is absolutely gorgeous. The details are amazing, the technology is believable for the time period and conditions, and each character is impeccably designed and thought out. Dave McCaig’s colors are deep and rich, giving the proper tone and mood for each portion of the story. This is an A list creative team creating one of the most engaging stories on the shelves today.
Verdict: It may have been gone for a few months but Low is back and it is a Buy! Rick Remender and Greg Tocchini’s tale of human hope and survival is an incredible read and one that every comic book fan should be reading.
