The Island Webcomic Review: Unpredictably Enjoyable

A young blonde woman, with seemingly no inhibitions is sitting on rocks. Overlooking a beach she spies an odd figure on an inflatable raft. His mask may appear monstrous, but as he reveals himself, you find out that he’s just a man. The powers that be who kept the world together have fallen and now what you have are two sisters, an East Indian male scientist (by way of London), and a town swarming with cats.

Adult in nature and sexually charged, creator, artist and writer Diego Guera of the webcomic ‘The Island’ takes on the premise of the apocalypse. What would a world that ended itself as we know it look like? And who would be left? There’s tension between the love triangle of sisters Pamela and Janice, and the only human male for miles, Anant. It doesn’t start well. Janice seems to be a militant without a cause and Pamela is tired of living in a small town with a large number of cats. However, based on Janice’s behavior you’ll wonder if there have been men before. Are there graves of others who’ve found their island? There’s also suspense where several nuclear engagements have occurred between the United States and Russia. The Russian army seems to be missing. Still, the reader is reminded that any potential world-conqueror had been defeated when they engaged with the Russians. From Napoleon to Hitler, they overestimated themselves, failing spectacularly. And while the Chinese debate about what’s left, they seem to be encountering their own end-of-world issues.

With this webcomic each panel reveals a portion of the story. Several panels barely have dialogue, while others inform you, through tidbits of information of what’s happening. For one thing, why is it that the two sisters haven’t killed each other? What type of family dynamic do they have where one gets angry about things Anant does, that are out of anyone’s control? Where do they get their food supply from? More importantly, if they had a chance to leave their home, what would they be leaving it for? Pamela asks Anant for a plane, Janice is struggling to survive and Anant is trying to gather information. Or is he? With the little amount of information given through the webcomic format it’s easy to make assumptions. You tend to like or mistrust someone based on their actions on a single page. Not realizing you’re being manipulated, in a few months’ time your allegiances might change. As the narrative unfolds, stereotypes will be challenged and alliances will have to be made. But what makes this webcomic enjoyable is that it’s unpredictable. You don’t know who to like or trust. At any given moment, a major character could get killed. Overall, a good story, no matter the format will keep you going back for more. ‘The Island’ does that.

About Donna-Lyn Washington 639 Articles
Donna-lyn Washington has a M.A. in English from Brooklyn College. She is currently teaching at Kingsborough Community College where her love of comics and pop culture play key parts in helping her students move forward in their academic careers. As a senior writer for ReviewFix she has been able to explore a variety of worlds through comics, film and television and has met some interesting writers and artists along the way. Donna-lyn does a weekly podcast reviewing indie comics and has also contributed entries to the 'Encyclopedia of Black Comics,’ the academic anthology ‘Critical Insights: Frank Yerby’ and is the editor for the upcoming book, ‘Conversations With: John Jennings.’

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