Posted in: Comics, Review | Tagged: brilliant trash, cyberpunk, dystopia, priscilla petraites, sci-fi, superheroes, tim seeley
Brilliant Trash #3 Review: Cyborg Doctor Capitalists
Kennedy continues to get intense visions of Dr. Zhen while she and Jim Heller try to get to make their way to California. This leads them to the airport, which is complicated by FDA Agents (no really) and a psychotic cyborg doctor.
Kennedy Avis is still a very passive presence in this story, but it's becoming clearer what Brilliant Trash is trying to do with her character at this point. She isn't a take-charge kind of person, and her job as something of a clickbait reporter has only reinforced this personality trait. Of course, she really is out of her depth here, but she's not the kind of person to immediately find a way to take over a situation like that.
That being said, I think Brilliant Trash will change that soon, and I look forward to that turning point.
Jim Heller's character is unfolding too, and seeing what guy he turns out to be should be really enjoyable. Dr. Zhen is really interesting too, and her metamorphosis as seen through Kennedy's eyes is very enjoyable to witness.
The fight with the crazy cyborg doctor is pretty great. She doesn't show up for long, but she is brimming with personality. The best part is easily when she encounters Heller and says, "Fine then it's firm against firm. Innovation against innovation. May the free market win!"
The pacing is handled quite well too. This issue feels like an organic stage in the story of Brilliant Trash. It feeds some big plot points in, and you feel like the next issue will deliver more.
Priscilla Petraites' artwork remains quite good. The world still feels the right kind of wrong to reflect the growing dystopia that is Brilliant Trash. The design on the cyborg doctor was great. There is something about Kennedy Avis' character design that doesn't quite sit right, but it's not a big problem and can be easily gotten past. Marco Lesko's color art is the right mixture of neon and dark grime to fit the world too, and the overall comic is rock solid in terms of visuals.
Brilliant Trash #3 is an engaging further exploration into the world of Kennedy Avis, Jim Heller, and the warring corporations. Tim Seeley has a really enthralling Blade Runner-esque cyberpunk dystopia here, and I look forward to seeing it evolve. Petraites and Lesko give it some really good visuals, and the overall comic earns itself a recommendation. Give it a try.