A few weeks back Richard of Richard’s Comics and Collectables gave me a copy of Walkie Talkie #4 to review. He said it was sent to him and he gave it a read, but it just wasn’t his genre, so he didn’t feel he could give it a fair shot. It looked right up my alley. Here we go.
I first wondered why someone would send out an issue number 4 to be reviewed. I didn’t see how a book 4 issues in can get a fair shot or give the reviewer a base to build off of. I later found out it was from a mini story inside the run… a number 2 of 2.
Let’s get the basics out of the way. Its written and so far as I can tell drawn by Nate Powell and published by Microcosm Publishing. The book’s physical quality is top notch and consists of many independently run shop ads in the back. This is major points to me because: a.) I tire of seeing low quality printings coming out of Indy publisher and b.) I love supporting Indy run anything.
I actually started reading this issue weeks ago, but had trouble starting through the rest. It felt like starting in the middle of a story. Go figure. To tell you the truth though even after making it all the way to the end I still have no idea what it was about. It was a mesh of plot points and scattered ideas. Something about an injured dog, a break-up, an imaginary friend, and 2 birds. Coming out in the end I don’t know what I was supposed to get, but here’s what I came up with… relationships hurt. I think I liked the art. It was well sketched as stand alone work. I couldn’t tell who was who and couldn’t keep track of a single thing. I’m pretty sure if I just saw a single page with no words I would look at it and think to myself, “I like that.” That’s all I got
After further research I’ve discovered this issue was composed in 2004. Again I ask why send it out now? The letter simply says, “If you like this copy of Walkie Talkie #4 by Nate Powell, check out Sounds or Your Name - it’s the complete collection of Nate’s comics.” I’m assuming that is what this was in support of. After 4 years of working in the industry I’m assuming he’s developed more of a sense of structure.