The Saturn Effect: Alpha #2 is a comic written by Chris Moses with art by Francesco Mazzoli and colors by Marco Turambar d’Alessandro. Different people struggle to deal with the new events in their lives. This is a science fiction comic with supernatural elements that stars a large cast. The main pair for this tale are the siblings Alpha and Ri. Alpha is a man in possession of a communicator with someone on the other end guiding him. His sister Ri is assisting him and she is very focused on setting the people the various colonies free. Another pair we’ll take a close look at are the mutant woman Enhanced and Bones, a male member of the Pure. Enhanced works on the surface which can be dangerous while Bones has a more managerial position. The story begins with a look at a child and his father, both dressed in regal garb, entering the space station. The perspective then shifts to Alpha and Ri as they break into a restricted location. This comic takes place on a large, city-like space station and the planet it orbits. The violence here is explosive with some hard hits but no blood or gore. The pacing here is steady and tone is like that of a fantasy sci-fi movie/show. There are intense moments that are mainly brought about by violence and life-threatening danger. The dialogue is conversational with some aggression and no word-heavy pages. This is a comic with many developments both character and story-wise that features a large cast that is going in different directions.

            The art here is detailed and drawn in a modern style with a bit of grit and strong shading. The colors here are taken from the classic sci-fi palette with a good blend of light and dark tones. For scenery we have the dusty and mountainous surface of what seems to be a volcanic planet. The main location differs depending on the characters being followed with Alpha and Ri searching the deep recesses of the space station while Bones and Enhanced get work done on the surface. The overall environment is very manmade and metal. The backgrounds pretty much always show the surroundings which adds a bit more impact to each moment. The expression level here is high as looks can change on a panel-by-panel basis. The emotional range here consists of sadness, anger, reflection, disappointment, shock, doubt, and happiness. The faces have a good amount of detail and there should be no confusion about what the characters’ expression is. The violence here is explosive hand can get electric with bladed weapons and firearms. There are some hard-hits but no blood or gore. The action scenes can be lengthy with a high number of panels and you might get lost at some points.

“Is this worth reading?”

Yes, if this is up your alley.

“Would I like this?”

If you like science fiction stories with supernatural elements that star a large cast and features violence, a bit of drama, and family troubles then this is for you.

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

R. Violence, sexual situations.

“Could I get a quote from the comic?”

“They thought it’d be easy playing angels.”

 

Digital Link: https://www.redseacomics.com/products/the-saturn-effect-alpha-2

Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1967380671/the-saturn-effect-alpha-ii/description

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

Probably Contains Spoilers

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Actual Pages(not counting covers and credits): 27

Violent Pages: 8, for 30% of the comic

Sexy Pages: 2, for 7% 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 – 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.”