And the award for biggest improvement goes to Dedication. Full disclosure this was my least favorite series from Double Take’s shared universe. I didn’t get the point of the first issue and it was another series that had someone telling a story and no one interacting with them while they told it. This issue improves a lot, but I wouldn’t say that it’s great just yet. We see the undead pour into the store and just eat everything in sight. Back with our two grocery workers, as you can imagine… one of them gets their fingertip bit off. Her reaction is great, but also kind of strange as she doesn’t scream or really freak out. From there they run to the roof access and hide up there so he can finish his story which now makes sense.
Meanwhile, the owner, takes zero shit from the undead and calmly acts out a plan to get them out. It’s kind of great because he shows leadership by having two employees help him. One boards up the window, while the other helps him load up meat to lure the zombies with. He’s not a deep character, but this did a lot to build him up. He’s still a cheap ass though.
There is also a big reveal about the zombies in this issue. There’s another change to them and it’s starting to feel like different mutations or something. I’m not going to spoil it since it will be obvious, but it’s a definite game changer for this series and the shared universe.
Not a lot happens in this issue. It’s pretty simple and straightforward, but that works for it. There’s two interesting scenes and one big reveal making this issue definitely worth reading. The writing wasn’t bad to begin with, but that story from the last issue was just too out of place then. Here it works, but it almost feels spoiled by the first issue. That and he still hasn’t finished the story.
The art is actually as good as the first issue. I didn’t really have any problems with the art in Dedication #1 and here it’s the same. Great detail in the character’s faces and if anything the backgrounds are fuller and the action more fluid in its movement. The art definitely helps with the feeling of a horde of hungry people with an insatiable appetite. The color is as good as the first issue as well. The lighting effects are on point and there’s no random shadowing to hide a lack of details. Overall, the art was one of the most consistent second issues.
Since this is my last review for the second issues from Double Take, I’m going to once again mention that I really love the paper quality for these books. The glossy cover and the nice interior paper make it feel like a worth purchase. What’s even better is that they’re all still at $2.50 and that just blows my mind. Clearly they’ve figured out something that other publishers haven’t. I hope that others will because it could be the resurgence of print. Also the cover is one of the best of the month. Put that shit on a T-Shirt and watch is sell. It will.
I’m on board with checking out more Dedication. It improved and I’m hopeful that it will do so again. I want to know how these characters fit into the bigger picture. I’ll be back to figure that out and to see what comes of the zombie reveal in this issue.
Score: 3/5
Dedication #2 – “Midnight Snack” Story: Michael Coast, Matthew Summo, Bill Jemas Script: Matthew Summo, Mike Soviero Layouts/Pencils: Young Heller Publisher: Double Take Comics Price: $2.50 Release Date: 11/11/15 Format: Ongoing; Print/Digital