REVIEW: ‘Finger Guns,’ Issue #5

Finger Guns #5 is written by  Justin Richards, drawn by Val Halvorson, colored by Rebecca Nalty, lettered by Taylor Esposito, and published by Vault Comics. This is the series finale of what will be volume one of this story.  Following the devastating cliff-hanger of issue four, issue five leads us straight to the aftermath of Sadie’s fight with her and her parents.

With Sadie in the hospital receiving medical attention for her lost finger, Wes is upset and worried. He is distraught over the events that transpired. There are intense feelings of guilt and anxiety resting within him. Halvorson, throughout the issue, conveys Wes’ emotional state perfectly. We see Wes expressing his gratitude that Sadie is alive and, in the next panel, the pain and anguish he is grappling with. Richards’s script must be very nuanced because Halvorson always delivers panel after panel.

While this is the last issue of Finger Guns for its first arc, Richards is still laying the seeds for its next story. While Wes is dealing with his emotions, Sadie also has her family to tend to. Richards writes with such careful depth that he is able to accurately capture the teenage idea of bearing everything on your shoulders.  Sadie feels as if everything is her fault and that she, single-handedly, needs to fix her family.

I personally dealt with so much friend drama as a teen. I always felt bad that I could not offer my help to my friends in need. On that note, it makes me resonate with Wes’s place through Finger Guns #5. However, I have had my Sadie moments as well. As a teen, realizing how your home life may not be the best and getting in between parental fights is one of the most harrowing aspects of my teenhood. Richards has a firm grasp on pushing the story forward while ensuring that there is a lot of emotional depth.

The narrative could not be as strong without the creative team that makes Finger Guns stunning. Halvorson’s simplistic art compliments the intricate and deep storytelling. Within this issue, Halvorson delivered some of his best character art of the whole series.

Nalty’s colors reflect the bittersweet and somber tone of the issue with lots of night scenes filled with murky blues, grays, and reds. The brightest panels in Finger Guns #5 is when Wes is expressing his happiness and the background of the panel is bright yellow, a small show of color symbolism that may go unnoticed but is a delight to see.

Esposito’s letters are always concise and elevate the story. Inner thoughts are in non-solid lined speech bubbles.  Loud yells are italicized and in colored balloons, making them stand out. There is a letter read near the end of the issue and Esposito fills that dialogue in with yellow-parchment notepaper.

Overall, I have loved every single second of this comic and I am sad to see it come to a close. Finger Guns #5 wraps up some loose threads while cultivating a path towards emotional maturity when it, eventually, returns. It has a careful balance of exploring angst without feeling melodramatic or whiny. I was looking for a fun series about kids exploring their emotions when I found out about this series. I was not expecting such a personal series that explores familial strife, depression, friendship, and identity.

Finger Guns #5 is available now wherever comics are sold.