It is amazing to think how difficult some prose writers has going into the comic industry. As much as we see novelists come into the industry and write their way into an Eisner; we see just as many writers come in and stink up the joint. China Mieville is falling, so far, in between these two worlds. Granted, I have never read a novel by Mr. Mieville and I’ll make sure to correct that in the near future. It sounds like that his prose writing is not as confusing to read as his recent outing in Dial H.

I bring this up because I think Mieville is trying too hard here with each issue. This issue is not hard to crack which is something I couldn’t say about the last three issues. The pacing is actually pretty good and there is nothing outright confusing about the story. The problem though is that Mieville is sort of overwriting the material. He’s going ‘Morrison’ on us if you get my drift. The creature that spawns here is pure ‘Morrison’ in that it is spouting nonsense that makes absolutely no sense. That and Squid’s origin is a bit complicated considering all we need to know is that he was in a lizard world and got banished.

The art by Mateus Santolouco however has improved since the first issue. While the creature (Abyss) is confusing to read I absolutely love the design that Santolouco brings to him. It must have been a bitch to draw and color but it adds a level of Kirby to the issue. That and the continuation of creative superheroes with the great fight sequences stay consistent in this issue.

Last issue, the pacing was all over the place and in here that has been corrected. But China Mieville still hasn’t gotten to the point where I can say he is comfortable with his writing. His ideas are fantastic but so far he hasn’t gelled them together into one, great issue. If Abyss was easier to follow and Mieville wrote a bit more clearly this could have been a much better issue. At least the series is showing why Mateus Santolouco has been a great find for DC.