Writer: Si Spurrier / Penciller: Matias Bergara / Colour Artist: Matheus Lopes / Design: Emma Price / Image Comics
Check out Liz & Paul’s original review of this issue on Crushing Comics!
Buy Image comics here and support The Comic Crush.
The Comic Crush is an independent website run by volunteers and does not rely on advertising. If you would like to support our writing, podcasts and videos, please consider subscribing to our Patreon or making a donation. Thank You.
31st March 2022 (Released: 23rd February 2022) Review by Brian Bullen
The Pitch: A girl wakes. She has no memories. No name. No language. No memory. Nothing……except a giant. Together they cross an astonishing world brimming with beasts, bandits, and deadly civilizations... If they stop walking, the earth itself forces them onwards. WHY? The child can't ask. She and her guardian have nothing…
except each other.
Multiple-Eisner nominees SI SPURRIER (X-Men), MATIAS BERGARA (Coda), and MATHEUS LOPES (Supergirl) present a watershed moment in modern comics: four double-length chapters of a bittersweet fantasy opus, completely text free.
Let's take a walk.
The Story: An armoured giant dedicated to protecting a harmless child in its care, plucked from a seemingly barren snowy landscape naked and alone. Travelling across a world filled with strange creatures that beset them at every step of their journey. They encounter large wolves that are mercilessly dispatched by the giant before their own larger protector arrives. Placed safely away from the melee the child's only thoughts are of a pretty flower just out of reach. After the battle sitting by a campfire the giant fashions the child's clothes from the pelts of the slain animals. From the initial tundra-like landscape we move through misty forests and into vast plains they move ever onwards to an unknown destination. At one point the child is almost pulled into a body of water by two tendrils which turn out to be the most gigantic fire breathing monster, 3 times the size of our armoured protector. As they fight the monster and the giant fall over a cliff and land on the outskirts of a settlement much to the surprise of its residents. These are the first other human-looking characters we have seen since the first panel of the reveal of the child. Though the fight is brutal the giant manages to defeat the beast before it can destroy the village. It is at this point for the first time in the issue that there is a speech bubble but the words are just strange symbols so indecipherable for us and so it could be concluded the girl and the giant. The giant seems to have taken quite a beating with its armour dented and damaged and also the child has a scratch that has drawn blood on her cheek. Standing in a barren field where the crops have withered, the giant touches the girl's cheek with the tip of its fingers. Moving away from the girl a few strides, the giant sticks its fingers into the ground and gives us the first shock of the issue because, from that spot, life springs outward across the once-barren land. In response, the villagers try to offer the girl food but before they can approach her the giant intercedes, its hand pushing the child away from the villager, much to the child’s very evident anger as she lashes out hitting her fists on the giant’s iron arms before he motions that they are to leave.
THE DESIGN WORK ON THE CREATURES AND LANDSCAPES IS INSPIRED
As they move away from the village a young boy tries to catch up to them to give the child a toy, seeing this the child jumps down from the giant but once again the giant stops her by creating a massive wall of earth to separate the two children. The child once again lashes out as the wall seems to explode into dust. As the dust settles it seems the giant armour is damaged and the head plate falls to the ground, we get the second massive shock…
From here things seem to settle for our two travellers, the giant protecting the child from whatever danger they encounter. By the end of the book, we see a potential reason for their long arduous journey and this adds another factor to this amazing first issue.
EACH TIME YOU READ THIS, YOU NOTICE MORE AND MORE
The Review: The description of the story above is all taken from the amazing artwork as there are no words at all in this comic. All story elements are depicted in the panels. The first time I “read” through the issue, it seemed a bit strange, leaving me a little unsure. But I went back over it again and again and each time I noticed more and I have to say this is such a brilliant book. There are a number of mysteries presented at the start of the issue that grows and grows as it continues and the few answers that are given only lead to more questions. This approach is really interesting, making you really pick up the threads yourself as the book progresses. The big focus of the book is the art and that is fantastic, each panel taking on the work of the dialogue and captions very successfully. You can feel the images create sound in your head and motion in the panels, making it easy for your mind to fill in the gaps.
There are some touching moments: From the snowball fight that does not go well for the little girl to the giant relenting and letting the child make her own toy. The design work on the creatures and the landscapes are inspired and we get a variety of stunning backdrops with the ever-present footprints winding their way along the byways and paths. There are a number of reveals throughout the issue that increase the mystery, with the purely visual nature of the reveals giving them more impact. The end of the issue adds another layer of mystery to the series and I can't wait to see what happens next. I’ve read this issue a dozen times now and still notice more details every time I look through it. The creative team of Si Spurrier and Matias Bergara have really outdone themselves with this comic and it will definitely make me go back and look at some of their other works, such as Coda. An inventive book that grips you in a totally different way from other comics. I think this could be a contender for comic series of the year based on this issue alone. It might just be one of the best comics I’ve ever read.
Buy Image comics here and support The Comic Crush. Step by Bloody Step #2 is available now at Gosh Comics. Check with your local comic store for availability on #1