The Dead Lucky #2 is written by Melissa Flores, illustrated by French Carlomagno, colored by Mattia Iacono, and lettered by Becca Carey. Image Comics publishes it. Bibiana “Bibi” Lopez-Yang is using her newfound electric powers and her giant mech suit, Ghost, to battle the renegades known as the Salvation Gang. But matters aren’t helped by the fact that Salvation has gotten its hands on a mech of its own – the Raging Bull! And further complicating things is the presence of the supposedly benevolent Morrow Corporation, who’s taken an interest in the new vigilante…
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What drew me to The Dead Lucky, other than the fact it put a new spin on one of my favorite genres and is set in what’s fast becoming my favorite superhero universe, was how it honestly approached trauma. Flores has been open about how she pulled from real life while writing The Dead Lucky, and it helps add the human element that powers truly great superhero stories. Bibi is struggling to reacclimate to life back home – she takes a job at her parents’ fusion restaurant, even though she hates tourists. She has a shaky relationship with her friend Eddie, who happens to be her ex, in addition to her tech support. And she’s haunted by the ghosts of the past, both figuratively and literally, due to her powers. We’re only two issues into this series, yet Flores handles it with such immense grace and an understanding of the craft that I can’t help but be awed.
Equally awe-inspiring is the artwork from Carlomagno and Iacono. Carlomagno’s artwork is insanely expressive; readers will be able to tell how Bibi is feeling from the way her face scrunches up, even when she’s in her mask, which has echoes of Spider-Man. And that same fluidity is present in the battle between Ghost and Raging Bull. Ghost is more limber, save for a moment when he shuts down, and the Raging Bull looks and moves like one would expect a giant metal bull to move.
Iacono uses a unique color scheme to separate the past from the present. Most of the past sequences feature light, almost opaque, colors, while scenes set in the present have cooler, darker hues. Ever present is the purplish-white energy that courses through Bibi’s body, as it’s what powers Ghost and takes the forms of her fellow soldiers. And as always, See uses her lettering as a way to deliver emotional truth bombs. Whenever a character’s words grow bigger, you know they’re angry and that that anger is hiding a wealth of emotions.
The Dead Lucky #2 continues to flesh out its futuristic world, delivering action-packed mech battles and exploration of trauma in equal measure. It’s rare that a new comic has leapt right out of the gate with this much confidence and talent behind it, but it’s welcome, both as an example of what the Massiveverse is bringing to the table in terms of superhero stories and how to use a fantastical story to approach real-life issues. In short, it’s a really great comic, and you should definitely check it out.
The Dead Lucky #2 is available wherever comics are sold.
The Dead Lucky #2
TL;DR
The Dead Lucky #2 continues to flesh out its futuristic world, delivering action-packed mech battles and exploration of trauma in equal measure. It’s rare that a new comic has leapt right out of the gate with this much confidence and talent behind it, but it’s welcome, both as an example of what the Massiveverse is bringing to the table in terms of superhero stories and how to use a fantastical story to approach real-life issues.
