Indie Spotlight - Raze

Rob checks out Raze by Samuel Willis & Tremayne Primm...

'The Walking Dead' meets '28 Weeks Later' as indie comic Raze makes its bite within a world on the brink. 

Set over four 28-page issues Raze tells the story of a group of seemingly ordinary people who are thrown together due to the onset of a virally induced apocalypse. Throughout this opening arc, we follow these people as they face the initial shock of their situation, to then attempt to survive this new world. It's an incredibly fast-paced narrative that takes you from one extreme to the next, but in doing so sacrifices its humanity in the process. 

The opening issue is arguably this series' best outing. We're quickly thrown into the action as a simple traffic jam turns into a fight for survival. We're introduced to our core cast of characters as they live through this moment. It's frantic and quite chaotic as Willis & Primm utilise plenty of classic "zombie" moments such as outnumbered cops, rushing crowds, the clichéd -  overturned bus, and someone begging for help before getting brutally murdered. It's everything from the zombie rule book! 

Moving on to issue #2 and we're still on the bridge. So with the zombies (or whatever they are) seemingly stopped by an overturned bus, our cast has time to chat. As mentioned above, the bulk of this issue comes from a tedious to and fro from Ian and (the as of yet named) Franky. Everything here revolves around Ian asking for help, and Franky outrightly refusing due to a past issue. What then follows is the group attempting to get a lift into town, a set of missing keys (that are not the right keys), and more murder.

Issue #3 then sees the horror take a backseat for a more character-driven affair. This slower pace allows Willis & Primm to give some reflection on their cast as the events of the last two issues hit home. While it doesn't answer any questions, it does give the cast at least some personality. The past between Ian and Franky is again teased, yet again fizzles out without any real outcome. The issue then ends with an instantly calm Franky flagging down a ride to a local junkyard. 

Issue #4 closes out this arc - and as of writing is the last published issue. Now at the junkyard, the group get more downtime as we're then given more introductions. As it turns out, Ashley (another member of the group) happens to be a doctor or nurse and has been asked to check out the infected Joe (not a member of the group). Anyway, her diagnosis is fairly bleak - Joe is going to die and turn into the rage-zombie creature. She can't help him unless they get to a hospital which isn't a good idea. What comes next is the group debating what to do as they each grapple with their morals. However, Micheal (the junkyard owner) has other ideas. 

In terms of the overall story, Raze is a bit hit and miss. Some parts of it work, and others don't. This doesn't necessarily mean that it's a bad story, but with a little fine-tuning it could be something far more. The cast is fairly large which doesn't give a lot of room to explore everyone's personality. This is mainly seen through Ian and Franky who have a past, yet we're never given the room to fully explore. While we do get some hints of individual character building, it doesn't go further than a simple introduction or explaining another character's flaw. The whole of issue #4 does more to show the group dynamic than the previous three issues combined. I would have been happy with the four original characters and given a more intimate story. But here's hoping Willis & Primm give us some exposition in future issues. 

Where Raze does work is with its portrayal of horror. Both issues #1 and #2 are packed with plenty of death and destruction as the group are caught up in the carnage surrounding them. Unlike your traditional zombies, the horde here feels more akin to those seen in '28 Days/Weeks Later. Rather than shambling towards their prey, these "zombies" are fast, and would rather pummel their victims to death than devour them. It's an interesting take on the traditional zombie apocalypse setting, and I'm hoping we get more time with these creatures as things move forward. 

Raze' art comes from Tremayne Primm, Joshua Christian, Montis Echo Boeher, and Vshane. While I'm not sure of each individual's work the group have collectively created some simple - yet solid line work. Much like the writing, artwork shines when the horror kicks in. Each sequence is choreographed well, with a lot of variations in viewpoints and angles. Close-up work of the "zombies" shows just how brutal these creatures are with pulsating veins, menacing grimace filled faces, and lots of gore. 

All in all, Raze is shaping up to be quite an interesting read. While its narrative is a little disjointed, it's clear that Samuel Willis and Tremayne Primm are passionate about the story they are telling. With a few tweaks here and there and some well-needed character individuality, Raze is one to watch. 

Thank you to Samuel Willis for sending an ARC over to review. 

You can check out Raze for yourself by clicking here.

Rob Lake - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow Geek Culture Reviews on Twitter and Facebook @GeekCultureRev