The War #1: Talkin’ World War III Blues

The War #1 by Garth Ennis, Becky Cloonan, Tamra Bonvillain, and Pat Brosseau is a tough comic to pin down. On the one hand, it deals with the all-too-real anxieties and creeping dread that the very real possibility of nuclear war would bring, and it does so in a down-to-earth, relatable way, via a group of eight New Yorkers (one of whom is an expat Brit, which becomes relevant as the story plods along) who all have their respective opinions and fears on the subject. On the other hand, it’s a comic where people talk at length and not much in the way of plot actually happens to move them forward.

To that end, the reader’s mileage will vary depending on whether they prefer character-first or plot-driven storytelling. It’s clearly Ennis’s intent for the story to be character-driven, as the eight friends in question are spurred forward by events that happen off-panel, and on the other side of the world. It’s a unique approach that almost could serve as a one-act play in another milieu. One by one, as the world inexorably changes in ways beyond their control, each character reacts in a very real, very passionately visceral way, pulling the reader into the psychodrama as fear takes the wheel.

But on the other hand, again: it’s a comic where a bunch of people talk a lot, and all the action happens off-page. To that end, the pacing feels glacial.

See? Tough to pin down.

Again, for emphasis: your mileage will vary.

It’s undeniable that Garth Ennis is one of the most talented writers of his generation. As he’s aged, he’s moved past his youthful urges to shock us with violence (“my cock is in the bitch’s mouth, and not in a good way”) or the grotesque (wub), and put more stock into his skills as a top-notch researcher and purveyor of the human condition in extreme circumstances. The War represents a further maturation of the writer as a middle-aged maestro with absolutely nothing left to prove, except what he’s willing to try next to flex his muscles.

On the art side, Becky Cloonan taps into a more subdued version of her usual style, heavily inking each page in a way that adds a sense of darkness to the proceedings, even when there’s technically nothing happening except for people speaking. But like any master of the craft, Cloonan knows how to draw readers in with body language and expression, even as Tamra Bonvillain’s muted color palette retains a sense of impending doom throughout.