Pneumatic Cases #3 is a comic created by Josh Wilson with art by Rowel Roque. The story so far has the Ravenscrofts attempting to solve a murder that occurred in issue one, but this third installment has our favorite couple put that hold. Their European tour has landed them in Romania, and even though they are trying to be helpful not everybody appreciates them. This is by far the most exciting issue and possibly the most action-packed. This really does read like a mystery novel so expect a bunch of words on a few pages and be prepared to think. The banter between Percy and Anastasia is still top-notch with many jokes and much flirting. You might not laugh out loud but you will chuckle at a few of the jokes in here. This story has good pacing though I do wish it was longer. This is a good comic that will grip the reader and hold them til the end.

            The Ravenscrofts hit a large amount of locations on their journey but art wise they don’t stand out that much. It’s like they give you just enough to back up the scene and that’s it. As wordy as this issue is it does not skimp on accompanying each speech bubble with an expression by the speaker. You won’t have to guess the context of the characters say in this comic. Face sameness isn’t an issue in this comic but you can tell who the big names by the detail on the face. The supporting cast tends to look a bit plainer, even when the spotlight is on them. Aside from that the faces are drawn well with consistency. I believe this issue also features the first significant wardrobe change for our stars, though I must admit the difference can be missed. There is a bit of tussling and some new tools make an appearance, so be prepared for a treat. If there’s one thing this comic’s art is, it’s consistent.

“Is this worth reading?”

Yes.

“Would I like this?”

You like mysteries being solved by a smart couple who is not afraid to get down and dirty during the Victorian-era? With heavy flirting? Go ahead and read this.

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

PG-13 mostly. There is one scene right near the beginning that has R-rated implications.

“Could I get a quote from the comic?”

“She got me in exactly the same way.”

 

Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/brantfowler/pneumatic-cases-1-3-sleuthing-steampunk-spouses/description

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

Probably Contains Spoilers

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Actual Pages(not counting covers and credits): 22

Violent Pages: 4, for 18% of the comic

Sexy Pages: 2, for 9% of the comic

 

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

 

Violence Level – 2

“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, except for the first two pages, they are a 3.5

“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.”