White Sky #3 – Seeing A World That Shouldn’t Exist

The world is haunted. Everything you know has fallen apart, and ghosts are everywhere in White Sky #3. After losing her father, David, to capture by a band of scavengers, Violet is lost and needs a sign. After voices guide her to a man named Walter, she and Walter try to escape the scavengers. Unfortunately for Violet, and the scavengers, the ghosts are on the hunt, and it’s dinner time.

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Creative Team

Writer: William Harms
Artist: JP Mavinga
Color Artist: Lee Loughridge
Letterer: Ed Dukeshire
Cover Artist: JP Mavinga

Writing

Bill Harms continues to do an amazing job developing the relationships and characters in this story. There’s been a lot of talk in the comics world about White Sky and why it works. I think the greatest reason why White Sky works is the synergy between Bill Harms and JP Mavinga.

The relationship allows Harms to focus on the relationships and growth of the characters. Violet and Walter’s newly found situation is further explored in this issue in a way that is both interesting and seems to portend things to come. Harms finally shows us what has happened to David, and we get to understand a little bit more exactly what these scavengers are after. This issue does a really good job of catching readers up with David while still keeping Harms’ focus on Violet being the center of the story. The developing trust and relationship between Walter and Violet that Harms is crafting has me on the edge of my seat and I can’t wait to see where it goes.

Art

JP Mavinga’s work is simply stunning. This issue is easily the best so far and continues to show why White Sky is receiving such acclaim from the comic community. Every issue manages to be better than the issue before and perhaps nowhere is that more evident than Mavinga’s work. Mavinga gives readers an awesome glimpse at the scope and power of these ghosts while feeling like it’s but a smidgen of their true power. The art is hauntingly beautiful. There is a particular panel that is a headshot of Violet that is so stunning it would be worthy of a cover.

Mavinga’s work deserves particular praise when it comes to us seeing what befalls some of the scavengers. The art feels so incredibly well done while maintaining the grit and grime of the post-apocalyptic setting. Even the blacks in Mavinga’s art feel darker and more foreboding than those of regular artists.

Mavinga and Loughridge combine beautifully on the art and colors to create massively effective uses of negative space within the pages. While traditional panels are used, Mavinga and Loughridge are not afraid of utilizing space outside of the panel and white negative space to move the narrative forward in meaningful ways. The negative space scenes of Warren make you feel the weight of the story. Ed Dukeshire really gets a chance to shine on this issue with significant SFX that pop off the pages. In the muted tones of the story, Dukeshire’s choices with SFX snap you back to the action of the story and drop you in the moment.

Final Thoughts

This creative team is unstoppable. White Sky is easily one of the best stories out right now across any publisher. While William Harms is known for Impaler in the comics world, three issues in and it already feels like White Sky will take its place as his magnum opus. I don’t have words to explain the feeling of synergy I get from the team of Harms, Mavinga, Loughridge, and Dukeshire. It seems like every single part of this story is firing on all cylinders. Simply spectacular from beginning to end.

Overall Grade: 10/10

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Until next time, may your pulls be magical, and your multiverse remain stable.