Last month, when issue #3 came out, I proclaimed that this arc needed to ‘wow’ me to continue. Paul Cornell has not done a bad job with this series by any means. Nor has Ryan Kelly as this has been one great looking series since it debuted. My problem is that the pacing of this book has been so slow to start that I can’t find myself reading yet another slow burn for Vertigo. (No offense to Mr. Lemire but had I known Sweet Tooth would move at a crawl I would’ve traded wait immediately.) But I love alien stories and I’m willing to give this series a chance if Mr. Cornell can just give me a reason to stick to issues.

Unfortunately, it is not looking so good as we are at the penultimate issue of the first arc. Again I don’t want people to think that because I am a bit uninterested so far with this book that it means this is bad. Cornell is clearly setting up a political thriller with a X-Files size twist to the mix. With this issue he’s even adding the notion that all of this alien stuff is complete B.S. and someone is making them believe this is actually happening. That’s a nice addition to the story so ultimately we won’t realize whether to believe the characters or not. My problem though is that other then that portion of the issue, not much else happens here. We get introduced to yet another character and more intrigue as the presidential race heats up. But at this rate the race in this series might take till November….of 2015 to finish at Cornell’s pace.

The art by Ryan Kelly is the sweetness for this series in my mind. Yes there are some weird hiccups such as faces being uneven at times. But for the most part this is a gorgeous looking book….even if Kelly doesn’t add much to showcase this is New Mexico. (Again very weird considering he’s known for doing LOCAL, a series about making the landscapes look 100% accurate.) There’s a lot of detail in each panel and the colors by Giulia Brusco (and now with Lee Loughridge) are so damn vibrant it makes up for some of Kelly’s shortcomings.

It appears the first arc is ending next month and boy I hope Cornell can deliver the goods to keep this an ongoing read. If you like political thrillers or alien stories then this is heaven for you. But the story is just moving too damn slow for me and even the great art by Kelly and his team isn’t enough for me. You know me guys, I am not for full on trade waiting on series I generally like. Saucer Country might change all of that if the fifth issue isn’t outstanding.