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Writer: James Tynion IV
Artist: Elsa Charretier
Colorist: Jordie Bellaire
Letterer: Aditya Bidikar
Publisher: DSTLRY
Many of us imagine the person of our dreams—a perfect blend of traits from celebrities, acquaintances, and maybe even someone we secretly admire or desire. But what if you actually met that dream person? And what if they turned out to be a secret assassin? Comics have a way of bringing these wild “what ifs” to life, and The City Beneath Her Feet #1 dives right into this intriguing scenario.
As is the case with nearly every DSTLRY comic this is a series with an impressive creative team of James Tynion IV, Elsa Charretier, Jordie Bellaire, and Aditya Bidikar. Four of today’s top creators are coming together to tell one story. These are not necessarily creators that I would put together but now seeing the end product it makes so much sense.
Check Out Another James Tynion Comic Review Here!
Fans of James Tynion IV should know that this is a different side of his creative mind. His work on series like Something is Killing the Children or Department of Truth is much different than the story we’re getting here. Both are good but in their own ways. The story follows Jasper Jayne a sprite of an individual that the kids today might describe as a walking aura. Impulse control is not her matrons suit as seen in her love of street vendor hotdogs and catered shrimp. How does she afford such lavish tastes and New York City rent? Well, she’s also an assassin and is quite good at it.
On the other side of the coin, there is Zara who lives a very different life. She is a struggling writer and on the brink of being fired so she decides to drown her sorrows at a local bar. On her way back home she encounters Jasper in the Subway as she is wounded from a recent attempt to assassinate her assigned target. Zara is immediately struck by Jasper’s presence so much so she is willing to help her back to her place. When she enters he apartment it is a step into an entirely new type of existence.
Much of someone’s enjoyment of this issue is going to be dependent upon that exact choice and how much you believe it or not. For some it may be too much to get over that someone would see a bloody stranger on the Subway not heavily ignore them let alone fall in love with them. Maybe that says more about a person’s ability to buy into love at first site.
For me, I feel we get enough information about Zara to understand the core is what is driving her. She’s bored and scared about her own life. Deep down you can tell she needs something and is curious to find it. She finds that something is in a rather unexpected place, and the fact there is an element of danger makes it that more intriguing.
Even if that is not enough reason for you there’s still plenty to stick around for like the art of Elsa Charretier and Jordie Bellaire. I am going to make a rather odd comparison with Charretier’s style because it reminds me of Jeff Lemire. Stylistically you may say they look nothing unlike, however similar to Lemire she is great at getting so much out of so few lines.
For example, there is a scene with Zara sitting at a bar and the expression on her face gives you everything you need to know about her. She has a thousand-yard stare combined with a face of complete and utter defeat. That look provides plenty of insight into her actions that come next.
I am also fond of the way Charretier structures her pages. She will overlay panels into a scene to make the transition from moment to moment seamless. It also helps establish a sense of place which is important considering how New York City relates to the story being told. Her pages are like living organisms that are dependent upon one another. Each panel can stand alone but they are often enhanced in the way they are anchored on the page. If you were to pull back all the way you would see she’s mainly using traditional structure with the panel designs, but it is executed in such a way it looks anything but traditional.
Jordie Bellaire’s color work is a major part of the look of this book as well. With Charretier’s loose line work, it is Bellaire’s colors that help distinguish key features in each scene. The palette here is heavy on pastels when it comes to scenes with Jasper. Her life is more vivid and hyper and you see that in the colors compared to Zara who lives in a much muted world.
When their worlds collide you begin to see Zara’s world change literally due to the color work. This is quite the partnership because they bring the best out of one another. Also kudos Aditya Bidikar as his dialog balloons tend to be on the smaller side here. He saw the beauty on the page and didn’t want to hinder it, but of course wanted to be able to make the story clear. He struck a
balance, which may seem like a small detail but also helps establish the tone of the issue.
I usually read all my books digitally but read this in physical form. I would highly advise you to do the same. Part of what makes the art great is not just how it looks isolated but seeing how each page relates to the one next to it. These creators were rather conscious of how this issue was designed and you see it in those layouts.
In a way, this first issue operates as a gloried cold open. As we neared the end I wondered if this was designed to be a one-off. Just a random romp around town about a fling someone had that was more of a fever dream than a complete story. Imagine, Before Sunset but one of the people is an actual assassin. Instead, it was a setup for what was about to come next. What comes next is supposedly where the real story will be found.
For a random example, it’s like War Games in WWE before all the competitors have entered the cage. Just as the last one enters, the cage shuts, and the bell rings to announce to start. Only for a ‘To be Continued’ to appear on the screen. Certainly, a good way to build anticipation, but could also leave some a bit cold and annoyed.
We at least know the characters at that is a big part of what makes a story work. On top of that it is one great book to look at. So as a first issue, it clearly accomplished the goal of making me come back for more. I just hope we did not just get the best part of the story already.
Overall: 7.5 out of 10
