Propeller #3

By Ricardo Mo, Alberto Muriel

“That is, without doubt, the absolute worst plan I’ve ever heard.”

“Well, it’s the best we have.”

“Oh, in that case, please do sign me up for your high-altitude spy games.”

Rex Baldwin is on the case! Well, actually his friend Hudson is on the case while Rex is trying to set up the case, and also there’s drama!

Writer Ricardo Mo (it’s the first word in this sentence so he’s getting the capital W, but I think he’s also earned it) uses issue #3 of Propeller to set up more tension between Baldwin and his friend Hudson, but luckily for Baldwin his friend has faith in him; maybe not a lot, but enough to place his trust in him.

In this issue Baldwin concocts a plan that requires some work by Hudson, but when things they turned around on them they have to act quickly…will they be able to get the job done?

Something else Mo does well in this issue is to lace the text with plenty of humorous lines, such as the one shown above, but also a line coming from Hudson as he complains about the job Baldwin has given him. “At this moment, all over the city, there are guys just like me settling down in front of the box. Maybe cozying up to a nice girl on the sofa, sharing a bottle of wine. Me? I’m freezing my ass off at the top of the water tower in the shitty district. waiting for some spoilt rich kid to let me know when it’s time to risk my life for him.”

This art is done by Alberto Muriel and once again we get pages that are in black and white but met with great detailing and shading work. A great scene comes when Baldwin and Hudson are driving in the backseat of a cab through the city as Muriel creates a full-page representation of the world around them. There are people waiting for traffic lights, others seemingly walking in front of traffic (hope the light is red), but it’s the background images that really stand out, such as the theater on the left hand side and the skyscrapers in the background.

This issue brings more tension to the table as Baldwin and Hudson are forced to scramble, but will they be able to finish the job in time? Also be sure to check out the Afterword in this issue as Ricardo Mo does a great piece about writing and what it takes to go from writer to Writer.