The Misadventures of Bombshell and Atomica #1 is a comic written by Kat Calamia and Phil Falco with art by Joel Souza. Two women attempt to leave their pasts behind as they adjust to life five years after World War II. This is a science fiction and superheroine tale that deals with LGBT+ people repressing themselves for society’s sake, but at their detriment. The first woman we see is Veronica, she is a blonde woman married to Victor, he is a former general who wants her to keep her super-strength under wraps. Betty is dark-haired and can shoot seemingly electric blasts from her hands and her husband is Brent. There is plenty to read between the lines here as not everything is said aloud. The story begins on the day Germany surrendered with people celebrating in the streets but Betty and Veronica are in a hangar listening on the radio. We quickly fast-forward five years as these two, both living separate lives, move to the suburbs. There are flashbacks, some short and some long, that help flesh things out and give us a better understanding of where these characters are coming from. This takes place in 1945/50 after WWII in the US with the overall vibe matching the time period. The main theme is the battle of hiding oneself and the toll that takes on someone. The action here is explosive and destructive but there is no blood or gore. There are more than a few sexy and sensual moments. The pacing is steady with a tone that can be uneasy or like that of a classic TV show like Leave it to Beaver. The intensity gets heightened in emotional and physically dangerous situations. The dialogue is mainly conversational and sounds like something from those old black-and-white TV shows with a dose of old slang and some Americana. There are no word-heavy pages here. This is a comic that shows the struggle of two superpowered women who have to hide themselves in more than one way just to fit in with society and live a safe life.

            The art here is very stylized and looks like something from a cartoon with smooth detailing and a good focus on shading. The color palette matches the time and there is a nice variety on each page. For scenery we have perfectly sculpted lawns and looming trees in the distance but there isn’t much beyond that. Some of the central locations are the homes(and lawns) of Betty and Veronica, the hanger where they worked, and a few other spots around town. The backgrounds are split between showing the scene and being either a solid color or a color gradient. The expression level here is high as these characters wear their emotions on their sleeve. The range is all over the place from sad and somber feelings to happiness and love as well as shock and anger. The faces are drawn decently and have a cartoonish element which makes all the different expressions very easy to decipher. Some of the superpowers give off a bright and ethereal-looking effect. There isn’t too much in terms of violence here but there is destruction and explosions. The action scenes flow well and tend to have a significant amount of panels to show off the moment. There are many nude scenes for these ladies as well as sexual situations.

“Is this worth reading?”

Yes.

“Would I like this?”

If you like science fiction superheroine stories with two leading ladies that takes place in the late 40’s-early 50’s with action and LGBT+ representation then this is for you.

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

R. Nudity, sexual situations.

“Could I get a quote from the comic?”

“I don’t want you to live in hiding.”

 

Physical Link: https://badbugmedia.com/product/bombshell-atomica-1-joel-souza/

Digital Link: https://badbugmedia.com/product/bombshell-and-atomica-1-digital/

Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/williamtener/bombshell-and-atomica-1/description

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

Probably Contains Spoilers

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Actual Pages(not counting covers and credits): 32

Violent Pages: 3, for 9% of the comic

Sexy Pages: 6, for 19% 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 – 1

“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 – 1

“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 – 4

“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.”