Comic Review: Egg by Chris Sturgill

Looking back, my last post on my Bulldozer Predictions was obnoxiously technical, so I thought I’d try to balance things a bit by doing a fun review I’ve been putting off for far too long.

At my last Wondercon, I was in the middle of my usual tactic of perusing the independent and small booths for the nuggets of awesomeness they almost always hide at large conventions. A large orange poster caught my eye, and I investigated further. What I found was a longtime artist with his first completely self-driven comic, Egg, by Chris Sturgill.

I spoke with Sturgill for a few moments, and looked through the books, and they caught such an interest that I grabbed all three issues for some mid-Con-weekend reading. I figured I would try to read an issue or two, then keep an eye on the comic for the future. What I did was sit down and read the three issues about as fast as I’ve ever read (which isn’t that fast), and finished desperately wishing there was more.

The story is one of a bumbling everyman, Walter Norris, and the adventure he finds himself in after a chance encounter on his 30th birthday. The setting is San Francisco in the not-too-distant-but-still-grungy future. Walter begins to learn about a conspiracy behind the pharmaceutical giant BluLife, and their wonder nano-drug of the same name.

The world that Sturgill weaves is a distopic future that I found all too believable. After the Great Recession continues, the USA’s economy takes a steeper nosedive, and soon after China follows. In the financial void, India solidifies itself as a superpower and world leader. The world is flushed out with apt changes in society and culture, making an interesting critique of current and previous policies throughout the world.

Maybe I’ve been watching too much X-Files lately, but the mix of action, humor, conspiracy, social commentary, and mystery seems very akin to that series, albeit with a more modern, corporate-focused conspiracy.

One thing that struck me strongly was how well done the action and pacing was, especially for a brand new series. Good storytelling techniques are paired with a healthy mix of humor and action to keep the plot skipping along merrily, and all of these factors come together really well in the end product. Even the mixing of American and Indian cultures is woven in and out of the story, reminiscent of Firefly in a way, and very well portrayed throughout the issues by Sturgill.

For me though, there is one scene in the issues that solidifies this comic as one that I will be following for a good time to come, and definitely up with my personal favorites in the sci-fi comic arena. I won’t give too much away, I promise, but at the end of issue 3, there is a fight scene between an unarmed, but very mysterious character I have chosen to name Egg, and a squad of future armed-to-the-teeth SWAT police. The fight begins as the SWAT team leader is yanked through a door he just kicked in, and Egg reveals himself in that doorway, apparently uncaring of the danger he faces.

The scene erupts in gunfire, and the lady protagonist bystander drops a cup of tea she is holding. The fight scene progresses, beautifully coreographed, and the fluidity of Egg’s movements is contrasted with the small panels and choppiness of the panel’s style. Throughout the entire fight, we watch as Egg demolishes the squad, and we watch as the cup of tea falls to the ground, pacing the entire scene flawlessly. It reaches a climax as one officer puts a shotgun to Egg’s stomach and fires point blank, at the same time the cup hits the ground, breaking in perfect unison at the bottom of the page.

I reread this scene at least three times, just marveling in the fantastic pacing, timing, and subtle hints to the characters throughout. I was sold.
All I can say is that I am eagerly anticipating the next issue of Egg, which can’t come soon enough.

Egg #1-3 are available online now
No. 1: http://www.comixpress.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=21&products_id=1201
No. 2: http://www.indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=3700
No. 3: http://indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4376

Blog: http://www.eggcomic.com/