Let me first point out a reprint of one of my many favorable reviews of Chassis in this issue's letter column. I want to be fair with you, my readers. I don't want you to think my review is biased because of the letter. In fact, I'm going to note some unusual flaws I noticed in this issue. Let me also assure the Chassis pit crew that the identifications of her dents are not sacrifices in an attempt to prove my critical integrity. You're looking at somebody who chortled at No Man's Land and shouted "The Emperor has got no clothes!"
First, they thoughtfully smoothed out the dents that were covering the page numbers. This makes my job harder. I have to :::sigh::::: count. We'll call it page ten. In panel three, although Chassis' face is in scale with that of the little girl's face, it's out of proportion with her body. Her arms should definitely be thicker since the panel is a close-up. On page twelve, panel two, her face is against out of sych, this time with her hands. Her hands are far too small. On page twenty-one, her profile becomes squashed in the last panel, and on page--huh--well, that's it. I'll attribute Covergirl's missing nostril to a printing snafu. That's three panels out of how many? Say four panels averaging per page--that's eighty-eight panels, and you wonder why I love Chassis so much?
You see ostensibly not a single thing happens in this issue. Chassis isn't racing--they in fact hold the race without her which is a nice touch; she's not trying to put an end to some evil scheme, nor is she trying to extricate herself from that evil scheme. It's one thing to characterize the star in her natural habitat, but it's challenging to draw her off the racetrack to spend time, though not quite voluntarily, with a "precious" young fan.
The dialogue in these scenes seems relaxed and natural, very laid back. The more looser environment permits the reader to see a softer side of the character; seeing Chassis read about jet propulsion to little Yokiko as she sits on her lap has got to be one of the cutest scenes of the year, and it's also characteristic. Beryl Markham wouldn't read to a little girl a story about Prince Charming. The aviatrix would instead have pulled out a flight manual.
Tassel, Chassis' bodyguard, is missing a body to guard so Joshua Dysart finds inventive things to do with the character in his off hours. Again, this acceptance of Chassis' disappearance fits with the character's serene personality. His investigation also allows Mr. Dysart to cover Cynthia Anderson--Chassis McBain's opposite number. not quite so sure the medication was that helpful.
Okay. I've pointed out some of the minor things Will O'Neil, Jone' Rodriquez and Mostaffa Moussa haven't done perfectly, but have they done right? In short, almost everything.
They choose a style--sharp-focused art deco--and stick with it. They copy nobody else's work. It's one thing to work with models or to improve one's own flaws by studying another artist's illustrations, but there's no excuse for copying panel-by-panel another illustrator's artwork. No problem here. Character design--all theirs. Distinction of characters despite relative ubiquity of style--all theirs. Realism in varied expression--all theirs. Detailed architecture--all theirs. Original, engrossing, exciting, even when no obvious excitement is to be had, that's Chassis.
