Chrononauts #4

By Mark Millar, Sean Gordon Murphy & Matt Hollingsworth

The time-transcending bromance of Danny and Corbin comes to its end for now with the final issue of Chrononauts. The duo, after being double-crossed by Sarvar, are on the brink of losing everything. Of course, Mark Millar won’t let the story end in such a simplistic fashion. With such artistic superstars as Sean G. Murphy and Matt Hollingsworth at the visual helm, he gives them plenty of material to work with to make the book iconic.

Sad to say, though, the events that take place in this issue seem a little too far-fetched, even for time-travel narratives. Yes, Millar wants to give his passionate audience more bang for their buck, but it has to make sense and be logical to some extent. The end just doesn’t justify the means in this case. I will say, that he brings a lot more emotional content in this issue than any of the previous three, which was refreshing. There have been hints of this previously that probably could have been explored further instead of waiting to unload it all in the last book. It seems like he tried a different way of storytelling by allowing the art to convey more of the story. Now, this has worked with various titles, but it just didn’t feel quite right in this instance.

Mark does give Murphy and Hollingsworth a lot of room to interpret the script. There are a lot of beautiful montage sequences, so fans of this art team will absolutely enjoy that. It’s been a real treat to see these artists’ interpretation of various historical periods. Oh, and the dinosaurs make another fun appearance! Matt never pulls focus away from all the details that Sean places in every panel. He lets the pencils and inks to give the book real grit and atmosphere.

Even if the story took a backseat, this comic is well worth its price. This is the final issue after all, so readers should pick it up. It’s a wonderful example of sequential art. Millar has already started plotting the sequel and the film adaptation is now in development; there is a lot to look forward to from this property!