Rook: Exodus #2 Review

Background – There is no escape.

Writing – This issue opens this world up even more and establishes some new ideas that will be sticking around for a long while.

The wi-fi connection, the thing that connects the warden’s helmets to their specific animals is called the Wildlife Grid and it does more than connect the wardens to their animals, it connects the animals to their wardens. What that means is that over time the wardens start taking on characteristics of their charges. For instance, Rook’s birds are aloof and think only of themselves and their individual survival. Rook’s constant battle to remain more human than animal drives this issue. It’s never made completely clear whether his determination to leave the planet is based solely off of himself or partly comes from the avian mindset. What is clear is that he continues to drink to drown out the bird’s “voices”.

Swine is, unfortunately, dead. Rest easy pig man, we hardly knew you. What’s so good about this reveal though is that we actually feel actual genuine sadness at this guy’s death (or at least I did.) That’s after only spending one issue with him, which has to be attributed to the quality of John’s writing.

Dire Wolf is finally introduced. She is a “company man” through and through. She has faith that the company is going to return to the planet and fix the world engine and everything will go back to normal, all because they said so. That is the crux of the relationship between her and Rook. To use a 20-year-old saying from the TV show LOST, Rook is the “Man of Science” and Dire Wolf is the “Man of Faith”.

At one point Rook and her could have been a couple, but the company doesn’t allow personal time for its employees and Rook shows equal amounts of bitterness and regret at this outcome. He still has feelings for her and offers to take her off planet in his rocket that he has been building. Dire Wolf refuses, but offers him a way off the planet if he helps her with a much bigger problem than the planet dying.

Whatever may have come from it, that idea is unfortunately taken off the table with the true introduction of Ursaw. The big scary bear warden we met at the end of last issue is given a name here. What’s fun about this is that Ursaw is NOT a warden. He’s apparently stolen the helmet from whoever was the bear warden, and his goal seems to be domination of the planet and control over all the other animal species. His forces target and destroy Rook’s makeshift rocket, which quickly brings an end to the only means of escape off the planet. Our issue ends with Ursaw demanding helmets and the heads that are wearing them.

Artwork – Jason Fabok’s art is crisp, clean and very expressive. Giant snapping turtles that can show emotions, packs of wolves that follow their leader, and giant bears laser beams attached to their heads (Dr. Evil anyone?) make for some great visuals. What was Rook’s escape rocket looked very impressive in the last issue, it looked even more impressive as it was destroyed. The remains of the city are apparently going to be left behind for a while after this issue and that is a little sad, if only because it looks so alive and lived in. This book is equal parts survivalist, Mad Max, and dystopian future rolled into one.

Final Thoughts – Out of the 3 Ghost Machine books we’ve received so far, this is the best. Great writing, incredibly fun concepts, and some amazingly strange, fun, and scary artwork make this the book to get. I said it last issue and I’ll say it again: being away from corporate comics has completely reinvigorated Geoff Johns.  If I haven’t been clear, I’m in this for the long haul and you should be too. You’d be missing out on a great story!

Comic Details

Final score: 5 out of 5

Publisher:  Ghost Machine (Image)

Creators:  Geoff Johns & Jason Fabok

Inkers: Bryan Hitch & Andrew Currie

Colorist: Brad Anderson

Letterer: Rob Leigh

Genre:  Sci-Fi

Format: Monthly

Release Date: 05/22/2024