Is It Good? Wildfire #3 Review

A lot of things have been happening in Wildfire since our last review. Have things gotten any better? Is it good?

Wildfire #3 (Top Cow Productions)

A giant fire broke out in Los Angeles due to a lack of water and a gigantic growth in weeds and dandelions (which also provide plenty of material for the fire to continue burning with). The firefighters are having no luck with containing the fire, other plants are now getting infected and growing out of control as well, and things only seem to be getting worse. Dan Miller is trying his best to figure out a plan or counter to these obsessively growing plants, but he may be too late.

Also, there is a side plot involving female reporters’ egos. Riveting!

I complained that the first issue was very slow and uneventful, since not much really happened until the final page. The past two issues however, especially this one, really kicked things up a notch. The story is moving at a rapid pace and honestly, going to the opposite extreme wasn’t exactly a saving grace. There are big things going on and happening in the comic; characters dying, the entire city’s destruction, and new plot twists… and yet the comic doesn’t let it really sink in. The story is trying to do and cover so much ground that the experience isn’t all that momentous. Admittedly, I am interested in seeing where the story goes from here… it just needs to slow down a tad.

The writing is a bit messy. Some subplots feel really unneeded and unnecessary, like the reporter one, as they just didn’t fit in with the general tone of the story. Characterization is there, but it’s a bit lacking and none of the characters feel fully developed. Sure, you can understand their pain and frustration at points, but it’s not enough. Possibly the biggest change is that the whole GMO debate that we saw from the first issue is completely gone. There’s no real politics or discussions like that in the book anymore. Honestly, an extra issue behind this and the last one could really fix a lot of these problems by giving the story more room to breathe and grow.

The artwork is just fine like I said in the first issue. It’s not great, but it’s not bad either. The characters are alright, the layouts are easy to follow if a bit bland, the coloring is decent, and I do like the imagery in the book. Linda Sejic does a great job at depicting a plant-apocalypse overtaking Los Angeles. Other than that, not much else to say about the artwork honestly.

Is It Good?

Wildfire #3 is a rapidly moving issue where tons of things are happening, but to the point where it actually hurts the story. The book doesn’t take a moment to breathe and allow for the story to unfold naturally, just shoving tons of plot at the reader without a care. As such, the story and characters suffer. I still remain interested in seeing where this comic goes, but it needs to slow down a bit (even though I originally told it to speed up. Oh irony.)