Absolute Martian Manhunter #7: Martian Vision is Back

Absolute Martian Manhunter’s first six issues were defined by Rodriguez’s coloring choices. The series was vivid, a kaleidoscope of impressionism in comic book form. Rodriguez picks up right where he left off in Absolute Martian Manhunter #7, maintaining the series’ rich identity after its hiatus.

Instances of elaborate color schemes are reduced, though. Absolute Martian Manhunter #7 eases into the series’ signature style, not yet reaching the heights of the series’ most recent issues. Rodriguez limits the use of expressive color to the characters’ thoughts for most of the issue. They appear amidst a kind of colorful smoke that leaks out from the characters’ heads. These vivid colors, set up against backgrounds with rich but darker color shades, jump off of every page they appear.

These color choices contrast heavily with the red/black/gray scheme Rodriguez uses to visually describe people’s refusal to speak of or think about the events from the White Martian’s recent attacks. Whereas the bright colors are used more for active thinking and even enlightenment, these colors are always arranged in a band encircling people’s heads and covering their eyes.

Camp centers Absolute Martian Manhunter #7 more on John than the last couple issues. The Green Martian slips largely into the background, at least relative to recent issues where his persona was as big a presence in the issue as John’s. Camp and Rodriguez keep him ever-present, though. His head sometimes replaces John’s atop John’s body. At times he is a passenger in John’s car. There are instances of Green Martian peeking over John’s shoulder or out from behind objects. He also speaks to John less. The Green Martian is much more of an observer in this issue, akin to his presence in the series’ early issues.

John’s personal life becomes a different kind of plot element here. The previous issues focused on his family life from the perspective of growing problems between him and his wife, Bridget, exacerbated by the presence of the Green Martian. It was mostly character development. In Absolute Martian Manhunter #7, Camp brings Tyler in as a kind of menacing figure, colorful but lurking in the darkness.

The “backlit” page gimmick is a surprisingly nice addition to the issue. It’s an easy way to communicate the simultaneous loneliness and desire felt by both John and Bridget.

Otsmane-Elhaou’s lettering choices are the most restrained visual element in the book. The most expressive his work gets is when he shifts from upper case to lower case to interrupt John’s current internal monologue with a tangent. The Green Martian’s “dialogue” font is similar to regular dialogue and caption text but just different enough to stand out. The puffy, irregular border of the bubble is the biggest giveaway most of the time, though even when the text stands alone it is recognizable. But the similarity to normal dialogue text is such that the Green Martian doesn’t feel completely apart from John and other humans in terms of expression.