Artithmeric 9 Issue #2

19 many would think an odd thing to say, but it is a quality that really stands out. These books are produced by a large creative team, writers, artists, inkers, colourists, letterers and even prop designers - something harking back to the work of Frank Hampson and his team on the groundbreaking Dan Dare comic strip in the early 1950s in the UK. There is a lot of work behind each issue and a lot of thought has gone into the plotting and dialogue in particular. It is a good story too (and one that is still developing at a rapid pace). One nice feature of the books is the lettering style and some of the extensions of ordinary comic-book grammar that is applied to it. The letterer of the books is Trevor Hankins, Paul’s twin brother! He brings two very nice touches to the work (as well as having been one of the creators of the plot). Firstly, the style of dialogue is at times multi-conversational; it is not easily apparent through reading the words alone just what it is that is going on. It is necessary to ‘read’ them within the context of the drawings in the previous, current and future panels. This is something that can only be done in comics and is unique to the art form.