Review: Fathom #4

A hot young marine biologist? Check. Strange underwater environments? Check. Mad scientist? Check. Scott Lobdell and Alex Konat? Double check. That’s pretty much every ingredient for a great comic. Fathom, created by the late Michael Turner, is in it’s forth volume, not including the myriad of spin offs, and it’s pretty easy to see why.

Issue 4 sees Aspen Mathews throw down with a bunch of bad guys in a church in an ocean under the Sahara desert.
Yup. Bizarre settings aside, it’s great to have Lobdell on this book. The story has been one of the strongest since the first volume, and really explores the subtle mysteries of the under water world. Lobdell pays homage to Michael Turner through his use of internal dialogue boxes, a device used unsparingly by Turner. It works, though, and since most of the action is underwater, regular dialogue is kind of difficult.

One thing I love about Fathom is that no matter who draws it, it sill feels like Michael Turner. Here, It’s Alex Konat who channels Turner’s spirit, to create something that has the perfect look and feel of Turner’s Fathom without copying it. I can’t think of much higher praise. The world of Fathom is as fascinating as it is beautiful, and well worth a look.