Writer Bob Salley
Artist Chris Gevenois
Colorist Fahriza Kamaputra
Letterer HdE
I usually start off by talking up how much I love Salvagers and how I’ve followed the series from day one, but I assume at this point anyone reading my reviews probably already knows that. Salvagers is the series I credit for turning me onto Kickstarter and really getting me into indie comics. If it wasn’t for Salvagers and writer Bob Salley I don’t think I would have had the courage or curiosity to dive head first into the indie community and I would have missed out on tons of great comics.
Salvagers is about seven issues in and the Wreck Raiders arc is on it’s third issue so at this point I can say I know the characters well and I can put character development on the top of the list for reasons I love Salley’s writing. From the beginning Salley has been very conscious of character development and the presentation of personality that each character has. All four of the main characters are developed well in the first four issues of Abandoned Cargo, pulling the reader into the crew, and Wreck Raiders continues along but with a new sense of importance as things start to heat up for the Salvagers crew. Salley understands the main crew have a baseline with the audience so what he has been doing is focusing on the story and development of villains and other characters to really beef up the story and adding layers to the book so readers aren’t lacking for understanding and motivations of the Salvagers crew. The way Salley ties in the characters to the story is well done and even for a sci-fi story centered around a debaucherous alien it has a certain level of relatability from each character. At this point in Wreck Raiders the crew is struggling to figure out what to do with their abandoned cargo and the aforementioned villains, the Klandarian pirates, have been hot on their trail. Ty’r and Teagan are in a bad situation with the pirates, Brigby and Captain Roenick are stuck trying to figure out what to do, and all the while the true weight of what they found on the salvage is all starting to come to light.
One of the things that Salley has done well throughout the Salvagers run is get with some really talented artists. Since the start of Wreck Raiders Salley has had same crew doing the art; Gevenois has brought a style that is nearly perfect for a sci-fi setting, his pencil work is second to none, especially in the indie community. Gevenois has a way with not only characters but backgrounds and landscapes as well. Kamaputra’s colors are what really ties together Gevenois and the characters, but again, the landscapes and city backgrounds are what really make the sci-fi feel come to life. These two waste no time and give the reader a taste of brilliance right from the first panel.
I always like to give credit where it’s due and I believe HdE is beyond credit at this point. There really isn’t anything that HdE can’t do. He is top of his class, best at his craft, and an all around excellent letterer. When I say there is nothing he can’t do, I’m not exaggerating. He isn’t just a letterer, his captions, action lettering, and font choices are not just great choices, they have become part of the book, and are every bit as important as the pencils or colors.
Salvagers can be found at Source Point Press and the Wreck Raiders trade paperback will be available on Kickstarter in September.
