Review - Debris #3

The role of Protector is full of epic battles and journeys, but rarely thanks. That's ok with Maya, the latest in the line in Debris #3 from Image Comics.

The third issue in four is written by Kurtis J. Wiebe, with art by Riley Rossmo, colors by Owen Gieni and letters by Ed Brisson.

Everyone loves a good flashback and Debris #3 opens with one, taking a look at a younger Maya learning the ways of the Protector from her fallen mentor Callista. Maya is just as fearless as a child as an adult, which brings the reader to the current situation both she and Kessal are faced with.

The brave duo continue their mission across the ever changing landscape, encountering new and exciting locales. They reach what appears to be a safe resting place, but naturally any place with an animal on a spit and belongings arranged neatly was either abandoned in a hurry or a current residence.

The initial flashback is actually a powerful storytelling device and Wiebe does a great job in allowing it to characterize Maya. It ends with the phrase "fight until your last breath" and shows how fearless and battle-tested Maya is. She stares down yet another colossal and subdues it with quick thinking, proving she's a more than capable warrior.

Maya's characterization aside, following here and Kessal along the landscape is equally as enjoyable. These two are used to desolate wastelands, where they're held prisoner within their own villages by fear of the outside world. Their reaction to simple things like dirt and snow is youthful, showing that even a hardened warrior can be pleasantly surprised. It makes them human.

Rossmo's art continues to impress in Debris. It has sort of a detached linework to it that befits the environment he's illustrating, further exemplified by Gieni's rough shading and colors. The battle scenes against the colossals are always illustrated extremely well.

Sadly, there's only one issue of Debris left after this. Wiebe and Rossmo could easily go quite a few more, but as it is you'll have to be content with whatever resolution Maya comes to in the fourth and final issue. Still though, it's been quite an enjoyable ride-along with Maya and Kessal as they've ventured across their world.

Debris #3 is in stores October 3 with interiors below.