Broken Frontier

The manmade God of the State begins to question the devotion of his followers as Speakeasy’s mythic saga continues.

In an alternate Soviet Union, the man known as Arohnir, the Soul of the Revolution, has manufactured his own god. That god is Atomika, the literal son of Mother Russia and technological herald of the 20th Century. With his near limitless power, Atomika has crushed all opposition and forged an empire. Hoping to duplicate his success, Arohnir creates several more manmade superbeings for the glory of Russia. But Atomika is a jealous god and does not take kindly to these pretenders.

Out of all Speakeasy Comics’ new series, I had initially passed over Atomika, thinking the concept and setting would not appeal to me. As I suspected, there are times when the stereotypically Russian-themed characters border on the ridiculous (names like Sputnik and The Iron Curtain sound like villains out of a "red scare" era Silver Age comic). However, what I was not prepared for was the quality of the writing. Andrew Dabb’s story is rich in mythological themes and the kind of grandiose, almost poetic text one would expect to fill the narration of a god. The script conveys Atomika’s incredible power and the mix of worship and fear that his mere presence engenders in the populace. This leads to a surprisingly dramatic and effective story. And to the series’ credit, Atomika finds the State-funded super-team in this issue as ludicrous as the reader does and quickly decides to do away with them.

Penciller and series creator Sal Abbinanti has one of the more unique art styles I’ve seen in some time. Everything from the elaborate technological spires of Moscow to the very look of the characters seems as if it is sculpted from clay or wax. Wavy distorted lines and detailed frescoes fill the panels, often creating a claustrophobic effect or the sense that some unholy structure is being belched into life by the land itself. Put simply, I would say it’s an acquired taste but one that is steadily growing on me. The bizarre and at times unsettling visuals plunge us fully into this alternate history, immersing the reader in the creative team’s vision.

Atomika doesn’t look or read like any comic I’ve seen before and in a medium like this, innovation is always welcome. Issue three of the series hits stores this coming Wednesday (June 1) and I would say this is definitely a book to keep your eye on.

-Eric Lindberg