A very engaging and enjoyable comic that introduces the agents of the Victorian era British Occult Secret Service (B.O.S.S) in three short episodes.
They Never See It Coming. A couple are attending a séance to contact a dead relative, at the same time a shadowy figure is having a sarcastic commentary on the event. When the medium is exposed it becomes clear that two of the agents of B.O.S.S. are highly unusual, one is a steam driven, small robot named Cal the other a mouse, Sigma. When they encounter a second medium it becomes clear that the robot and the mouse are more than a novelty act.
The Devil’s Fishing Hole, a haunted marsh is actually haunted by something very dangerous. When Cal and Sigma encounter it, Cal has to take a significant risk with Sigma to solve it.
Frame Breakers reveals that there are people who are more than willing to traffic with demons in order to get what they want.
Ken Reynolds has managed a number of difficult story tasks in this issue with flair and considerable confidence. The idea of a steampunk occult secret service is a genre staple at this point, getting a new way to imagine it and exploit the strength of the idea is tricky, Ken Reynolds makes it look easy and natural. The weight of the idea rests on Cal and Sigma and they carry it with ease, the bond between them is tricky, they each need the other and are frustrated at the limits this imposes on them. At the same time they have a clearly effective working relationship that allows them the space to cooperate and to manage. Ken Reynolds has nailed the critical odd couple dynamic that makes they engaging and compelling.
The progression of the stories introduces the cast and each carries a reveal that shows more of the central situation between Cal and Sigma. The information needed to created the set up and establish the cast and the context has been very nicely divided up so that it never just an info dump for the reader. The set up is developed very naturally and the cast given a chance to demonstrate who they are and what they are fighting against.
The lettering for Cal and Sigma is used to clearly differentiate the two, this is very impressive as white letters on black are used for both. There is no confusion between the two due to Ken Reynolds’ subtle mastery of the process, the links between the two and the differences between them are clear without ever being obviously declared.
Sam Bentley’s astounding black and white art is a pleasure to read, the human cast are all strongly individual, their faces are expressive and their body language is clear. They fit into their context with ease, they never look like supermodels or superhero’s, they look like humans going about their work. Cal and Sigma are equally expressive, Cal looks like a steampunk robot should, Sigma bristles with attitude. The art is comfortable with quiet dialogue and explosive action, the panel layout is cleverly done to control the pace of the story.
Cognition 0 is a great fun comic by very talented creators, the story idea is developed in engaging and happily unexpected ways.
