The best laid plans never go according to schedule. An inhabited planet has riches unclaimed. It’s enough reason for Bobby Prost to come back to the crime life one last time. Prost and his crew rolled the dice. They seemed to have cashed out emptyhanded.
Waiting in the wings are prisoners serving deathly life sentences. The “Casanova Killer” Cory James is leading the rogues. They see Prost’s ship as a means to escape their never-ending sentences. Unfortunately for both, someone else has other plans.
LIFE #5 by Brian Azzarello, Stephanie Phillips, Danijel Zezelj, Lee Loughridge and Jared K. Fletcher brings forth the pen-ultimate chapter of Pros and Cons.
It’s been a long wait since issue #4. Let’s not stall any longer & dive into the chapter.
LIFE #5 by Brian Azzarello, Stephanie Phillips, Danijel Zezelj, Lee Loughridge and Jared K. Fletcher (DSTLRY)
*** POSSIBLE SPOILER WARNING ***
“Pros” presents a traitor in the midst. Fiona has schemed her own plans. This leaves the crew in a very dangerous spot. Even with the score at their fingertips, escaping Hell on this Earth isn’t easy. The writing sees Damone and Jax comprehend the set-up. Readers watch as their hope dwindles away. Seeing Fiona describe her twisted motivation gives a newfound perspective on actions. It also leaves the door open for an unexpected surprise. The dialogue is chilling as each page turns. Jax’s meeting with the Cons closes out this portion. Their chat goes in many directions. It ends with a shocking action. The ramifications feel huge as no one is escaping fallout from a thief’s choice.
“Cons” heads into James’ sinister escape plans. Readers see quickly how that has been thwarted. The realization that Queen Jesus no longer factors in plans shakes things up. This portion does a solid job going into flashbacks. Their focus is on James’ rise to power on the planet. The banter between convicts proves there is no real honor. Readers see a very clear, but dark picture of the reality. It rolls into seeing James’ last chance leave his sight. The writing vents his frustration onto his other associates. Events come full circle with the “Pros” part to close. The highly combustible meeting leads to a startling ending. No choice goes without grave consequences in this close.
Zezelj and Loughridge go for a vivid panel set-up early in the “Pros” portions. A full page image laced with smaller panels down the middle walks readers through Fiona’s turn. This heightens the brooding moods of the thieves. The coloring assists huge when it comes to the action. A noteworthy red tips off readers of a fatality. This moves into Fiona’s grand scheme. The changing palette shows her ascension of plans. Her twisted confessions tell a broken tale via her expressions. This leads into the explosive close. There’s never a moment to breathe when the meeting is hanging by a thread. The last page is a full image that drops a massive exclamation point on events!
“Cons” showcases the savage aggression of James and company. These are not nice people and the art fully drives this home. James’ rage pours over each panel. It’s a stark contrast to the flashback moments. Loughridge’s coloring switches to reflect the moods in play. Nothing becomes more vivid than James seeing his plans fly out of grasp. The pages lock in his frustration of losing. Save for the other flashback, the art never breaks this mood. It pushes into the other side of the “Pros” close. There’s plenty of anger in these pages. It all boils to a head with the full last page. An action is taken that won’t soon be forgotten steering into the finale.
OVERALL GRADE: 9.4
One person’s drastic actions throws everything into chaos in another powerful issue of “Life”. Azzarello & Phillips pen an aggressive view of broken dreams with their writing. Zezelj and Loughridge paint a highly emotional view of lost hope with the visuals. Don’t sleep on this extremely creative take on traditional comic storytelling.
Let me know in the comments below your thoughts on Life #5. Thanks for reading!