Route 666 #21 Review

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Reviewer: Chris Delloiacono
Story Title: N/A

Written by: Tony Bedard
Penciled by: Karl Moline
Inked by: Rick Magyar with Mike Perkins and Andrew Hennessy
Colored by: Suni Pak
Lettered by: Dave Lanphear
Editor: N/A
Publisher: CrossGen

Talk about advancing the storyline!

I’m glad to see that Tony Bedard is really attacking the key plotlines and moving things forward in Route 666 the past few months. I don’t even want to think about this book getting cancelled, but it is hard not to when so many CrossGen titles have been axed in recent months. I’ve been lucky that all the CG stuff I read has continued on in one form or another, but I have read the many disappointing messages from fans and reviewers about the conclusions of some books. While I’m thrilled to see Mr. Bedard giving us more answers than questions the last few months, I hope this doesn’t signal that Route 666 will be winding down anytime soon.

It seems as if Tony Bedard is pulling out all the stops to escalate the conflict on the planet of Erebus. Erebus is really an analogue for our Cold War era Earth. The United States of Empyrean and Rodina serve as the U.S. and the Soviet Union respectively. Don’t think that this is just some political thriller though, Route 666 is a top notch horror adventure with a lot of twists and turns. The main difference on this world as compared to Earth of that time period is that werewolves and other nasties from perdition are the big problem. This is of course where the horror elements come in.

Issue #19 sparked a Cuban Missile Crisis-like situation that continues to escalate this month. In that issue, series lead Cassie Starkweather snuck into the senate of the United States of Empyrean and showed the Rodinan ambassador to be a werewolf. The Rodinan killed several police officers in his escape to his homeland bringing Cassie and her friend Cisco along as hostages. Last issue, we saw Cassie and Cisco sprung by Rodinan insurgents.

Bedard gives us a nice breather this month as Cassie gets a clearer understanding of the threat her, and the rest of the world, must face. Not to mention some interesting back-story on how Perdition’s minions oozed into the politic of Rodina. From there Bedard swings the adventure back to full gear, as Cassie and her friends attempt to reach a research station in the Arctic Circle.

There is also a great sequence featuring President Carlson, of Empyrean, meeting with his highest level advisors. This gives us an idea of where the world is and what may happen in the next few hours/days/weeks. I found the scene to be mainly straight-inner-circle-political-wrangling (ala Thirteen Days) while also being a touch reminiscent of the dark humor in Stanley Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb.

Karl Moline’s pencil work continues to set the tone for this series. I’ve rang his praises numerous times in the past. Comic horror is totally dependent on a pairing that works perfectly like that of Moline and Bedard. Moline’s pencils set the appropriate mood as well as the grim and foreboding tone. Karl Moline is one of my favorite pencilers today.

I have to mention, that I am more than a little puzzled by the cover this month. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a beautiful piece of art, albeit a bit strange. The cover depicts Cassie startled by the mushroom cloud explosion of a necro-nuclear weapon. The odd part has to do with a dog (who has a cool x-ray effect going on) that has the back of Cassie’s pants in her mouth and is pulling them down to expose underwear to our heroine’s consternation.

In the last year Cassie has found herself under the big top, in a fishing town reminiscent of Salem, Massachusetts, and an Amish-inspired region. This stark contrast in Cassie’s adventures is the thing that’s kept Route 666 fresh for nearly two years. Tony Bedard has continued to find new horror-situations to put Cassie in; ones that are totally unlike where she’s been before. You never know where Cassie will end up, but you can be sure it’ll be a damn fine read every month.

The Dark Overlord of 411Mania, Daron Kappauff, recently sat down for an interview with Tony Bedard. Check it out if you haven’t already.