EGOs #4

By Stuart Moore, Gus Storms & John Rauch

It feels like a long time since we’ve gotten more from EGOs, which had an amazing first three issues. This month, EGOs #4 returns to Deuce and crew in a different sort of story. Now that Masse has been defeated, Stuart Moore seems to be focusing on some of the new additions to the team, while things slow down for Deuce and Pixel as they deal with both administrative and personal issues.

This latest installment serves more as a one-shot story rather than part of a greater story arc. The narration has been one of the best parts of this series, although it is fairly sparse in EGOs #4. This doesn’t take away from the execution or enjoyment of the book, and when the narrator does chime in it is always in a particularly helpful spot. There was at least one moment in the book that might have been pretty confusing for some readers, but the narration always chimes in at just the right moment. Nothing is dumbed down or given away beforehand and this aspect of the story succeeds yet again.

Unfortunately, Pixel and Deuce aren’t getting any more interesting at this point, and their part of the book feels more like a necessity than an intriguing plot point. On the other hand, Gödel, Shara, and Pigmentia continue to receive some excellent development, both as individuals and as a team. These three are the focus for most of issue #4 and this part of the story was a wild ride. Combining their respective talents for some crazy sci-fi mischief, the reader is soon being carried through an intense battle with sentient dimensional membranes in the gap between universes! Say what?! And we thought Masse the sentient galaxy was insane…This was definitely an enjoyable single-serving of EGOs, but it will be terrific to get back to the core of the greater story when the series returns.

Once again, Gus Storms nails the artwork. The illustrations and character designs feel very unique to this series, while everything just looks crisp and cleanly drawn. The designs are really interesting, the environments are very well-illustrated, and there were a lot of crazy, creative visuals throughout, particularly during the newcomers’ escapade through the void between dimensional membranes. Storms received some help with the artwork this time, as colorist John Rauch joins the creative team for this book. Storms’ work is always phenomenal, but the addition of Rauch was a perfect match for the series. His work is astonishingly faithful and coherent with what Gus Storms has been doing on the title, and most readers probably wouldn’t even notice the change if they weren’t aware of the additional name on the inside cover. However, the coloring in many of the panels in EGOs #4 looks slightly more detailed than previous installments, which adds a bit more depth overall. Again though, everything is just as bright, vibrant, and imaginative as we’ve come to expect.

It’s unfortunate that we now have to suffer through an EGOs hiatus for a number of months! This series has been highly enjoyable and well-executed, but if you haven’t had a chance to catch up with the rest of us, be on the lookout for the first trade collection hitting shops this summer!