BARREN SOIL #1 is a comic created by Chris Wozniak. A wealthy man attempts to procure the services of a lawyer as he’s been charged with a crime. This is a dramatic noir comic with mystery and superhero elements. The leading lady for this tale is Audrey LeMont, she is a criminal defense attorney who is blunt and to the point. The main man here is Henry Thurman, he is the owner of Thurman Helicopters and is very wealthy. Though there are a few other characters we’ll come across these two are the mina focus. This story begins at 6am in LeMont’s law office where she is attempting to drink her morning coffee but she is interrupted by Thurman. Though she protests it for multiple reasons he is very insistent that her services are very much needed. The violence here is mostly physical but things do get sharp with some blood shown. The pacing here is slow as this has a lot of talking which fits the noir and slightly broody tone. There are many intense moments due to violence and revelations. The dialogue is mostly conversational with a storytelling tilt and rare narration. There are at least a few word-heavy pages. This is a comic that focuses on the events that shaped a man who is trying save others, though he knows they all can’t be saved.

            The art here is very detailed with smoothness and heavy shading. This is in black-and-white with a dark gold color being used for flashback-related moments. This takes place deep in New York City so natural scenery is scarce but we do see some trees and grass. The main location of this story in the present is LeMont’s office while in the past it is all over from alleys to cemeteries to churches to the middle of the street. The backgrounds are split between showing the surroundings and being a solid/gradient color. The expression level here leans towards the lower end as most of the characters here maintain a stoic look. Anger is a prominent emotion here with sadness a bit more rare and smiles even rarer. The faces can vary in detail but it is high overall and most every look comes across clearly. The violence here is physical with some bladed weapons leading to blood. The action scenes flow smoothly for the most part but the occasional sequence may throw you off a bit.

“Is this worth reading?”

Yes.

“Would I like this?”

If you like noir stories with mystery and superhero elements that star a man and woman and features violence, drama, and crime then this is for you.

“What would this comic’s film rating be?”

PG-13. Violence.

“Could I get a quote from the comic?”

“Sometimes I feel compelled to make things my business.”

 

Digital Link(Free): https://drive.google.com/file/d/14W1UNQ4shK5xCJJXi9h5r1b0iAQzRT1m/view

Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/woz/barren-soil/description

Indiegogo Link: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/barren-soil-graphic-novel/x/26236710#/

FundMyComic Link: https://www.fundmycomic.com/BarrenSoil

***IN-DEPTH COMIC STATS BELOW***

Probably Contains Spoilers

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Actual Pages(not counting covers and credits): 28

Violent Pages: 9, for 32% of the comic

Sexy Pages: 0, for 0% of the comic

 

**The levels below aren’t necessarily maintained throughout the whole comic, but they were definitely reached**

 

Violence Level – 3

“Wasn’t no tussling at all.”

“Sometimes you gotta hit somebody.”

“I’m getting charged with how many counts of assault?”

“This was a tournament arc.”

“All my life I had to fight.”

 

Gore Level – 3

“The only thing leaking out your face is tears.”

“Looks like somebody spilled some ketchup.”

“Might need to soak that up with a bath towel.”

“That isn’t supposed to be outside the body.”

“This is a slaughterhouse.”

 

Death Level – 2

“And everybody lived happily ever after.”

“We might have gone to a couple funerals.”

“It just LOOKS like a serial killer was here.”

“Yeah this was a tragedy.”

“Think Gettysburg.”

 

Porn Level – 1

“Everybody kept their clothes on.”

“I guess it was too hot for a bra.”

“Sometimes you got to let everything air out.”

“This is like late night Cinemax in the early 2000’s.”

“Oh. This is porn.”