Broken Frontier

The Red Line is the wrong side of the tracks and Sudra had a shot to get out and make something of herself but tragedy struck. Now Sudra wants revenge and maybe more.

The Red Line is a new comic series by the team of writer Geoffrey Thorne and artist Todd Harris. This review will refer to the San Diego Comic-Con edition, although, I have been informed that some slight changes will be made to the issue before it is published to a wider audience in December. While the story here is not exactly groundbreaking, it certainly presents ideas and viewpoints not often seen in superhero comics.

In Pac City, superheroes routinely save the day against supervillains but the neighborhood known as the Red Line faces more prosaic evil. The Jones family works hard and encourages their daughter, Sudra, to excel, in hopes that she will go on to college and leave the Red Line. She is close to making it when tragedy strikes her family. Sudra loves the superheroes, called ubers, but none of them ever come to the Red Line. The police prove to be of little help as well in catching the criminals. Then fate puts into Sudra’s hands the means to avenge her family. The choices Sudra makes will not only affect her and her friends, they may also change the face of the Red Line forever.

Writer Thorne has crafted a strong, ethnic heroine in Sudra Jones. She is smart and sensible even if she does chafe somewhat under her parents’ rules. Thorne makes you believe, though, in the economic and social realities of the Red Line and so you understand why Sudra’s parents are so tough. It is clear, though, that the Jones family is based on love and caring and so, when her father is killed and her mother left in a coma, it is understandable the spiral of depression and rage Sudra sinks into. When she gains access to something that allows her to channel that rage the results are shocking. I loved the fact that Thorne uses this opportunity to show Sudra tapping into her mother’s cultural heritage as a Hindu there as well.

Although I’ve never heard of artist Todd Harris before, his artwork here is good and is perfectly suited for the dark, gritty, urban feel of the title. There is at least one panel where Sudra’s friend, Chaney, looks decidedly off, but that is the only problem with consistency seen. For the rest of the comic, Harris provides both widescreen superhero action, as well as small, intimate moments. He also excellently brings to life the consequences of crime for both criminal and hero.

This comic is no simple story of good versus evil – crime is not always that clear cut and the line here between hero and villain could be a narrow one indeed. Sudra Jones wants to make a difference but can she see the right path to do it? If you like superhero stories with a gritty, urban edge then The Red Line is exactly what you are looking for.