w0rldtr33 #4: This Is All Kinds Of F$%*#! Up

RECAP

Ellison has fallen deeper into the Undernet than he ever could have imagined. Now the life of one of his closest friends hangs in the balance...and PH34R is winning. Strap in as multiple Eisner Award-winning writer JAMES TYNION IV (THE DEPARTMENT OF TRUTH) and FERNANDO BLANCO (Detective Comics) chart new frontiers of horror!

CREATIVE TEAM & COMIC INFO

Author: James Tynion IV
Artist: Fernando Blanco
Colorist: Jordie Bellaire
Letterer: Aditya Bidikar
Publisher: Image Comics
Genre: Action, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Published Date: 07/26/2023

REVIEW

The issue opens up with a flashback of Gabriel, Liam, and the rest of the crew when they were 18 when Gabe first discovered w0rldtr33. The readers are briefly introduced to Gabriel’s sister, Sammi, and cuts to the present day before seeing what the group experienced in the undernet.

As they try to deprogram Fausta to detach her from her connection with w0rldtr33, Amanda and Liam have an honest conversation with each other about their past, present, and future. Silk and Nicky are still trying to track down the blonde nameless murderer, and Gabe reveals a connection that leaves Ell and Fausta confused.

Cover Art

The main cover art was created by the issue’s artist, Fernando Blanco (Catwoman, Fallen Angel), and Wil Shrike. Just as with the previous three issues, this shows the main antagonist, the nameless blonde murderer, standing over the body of someone she just killed. This time, the scene is inside what appears to be a backstage room of a theater or television station, showing the back of the murdered person with their face shown in the makeup mirror, overlayed with a purplish hue tone.

There are 10 variant covers for this issue. One of them is Cover B which was created by Emma Rios (The Amazing Spider-Man, Mirror). Reflecting the idea of w0rldtr33, it shows a person in a business suit presumably being sucked into another dimensional, digital plane of sorts, with different layers of prisms that lays over a flowery plant with vines.

Writing

James Tynion IV (Detective Comics, Batman Eternal) continues to explore this idea of the undernet as a place in the digital space that is as real as our world and that wants to somehow connect with this world and get in. Up to this point, the reader can only rely on the expressions that people have made when they were exposed to the undernet, but issue 4 gives the reader a first-hand account through Fausta of that world. The idea of it is so vastly, god-awful disturbing, one hopes that this is a reflection of the depths of how far James’ imagination can go and not an indication of his current mental state. It is impressive to think of an entity like this to write about that works so well for a story that makes one think of how this could be a possibility in our world.

The various character developments in this issue are impressive. Each set of characters is given their moment to contribute to the story that flows naturally in its progression. The flashback to the initial discovery of w0rldtr33 then dives into deprogramming Fausta, which leads to Liam and Amanda going on patrol while they catch up with each other. It all weaves together so well.

Artwork

Overall, the art in this issue is to be highly commended. With art by Blanco, colored by Jordie Bellaire (Batman, Detective Comics), and lettered by Aditya Bidikar (The Department of Truth, Detective Comics), the best way to describe their work is uncomfortably gorgeous. The various color palettes that Bellaire uses evoke the right emotion for each page; the imagery of the Undernet elevates and accentuates its shocking nature, and the details in some of the background scenes give it that sense of the horror genre.

This is also an issue where we see a lot of intimate kissing. As a reader it is unclear if these scenes were drawn to be realistic, to highlight the awkwardness that is kissing, or maybe both. But they don’t shy away from leaning into making one feel uncomfortable with this. And this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. One of the goals of the series is to highlight just how uncomfortable our world can be, and this is one way they captured it. Overall, the art is something that you can’t look away from. Not like a car or train accident, but it’s more like seeing two people argue with puppets in their hands; it’s probably one of the oddest things one will ever see, but the situation is so intriguing that it keeps one hooked.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Each issue of the series keeps leveling up in all facets of the story. It gets weirder and more intriguing, the stakes getting higher and the details are wild.