The title “The Ghost Fleet†conjures up images of, well, a fleet of ghost anything. Humans, trucks, tanks or anything really. It’s a shame that Donny Cates fails at making any kind of impact in the opening issue of this comic.
The story is about two cops/soldiers/armed forces members who are trying to protect a semi-truck. The truck then gets attacked and they have to protect it at all costs. It does not end well at all.
The story is about as underwhelming as you can get. The entire comic is just one big action scene where the convoy is under attack. It’s an OK beginning, but there could have been a lot more to it. Also, the beginning with Andrew Jackson making a deal with Jean Lafitte doesn’t seem like it has nothing to do with the story. Cates had better figure out a way to make that opening scene work or that scene would just be pointless.
Also, the ending sets up something completely different than what this comic is about. It also looks like a much better story than what the first issue has to offer. Perhaps Cates will have a much better written story in the next issues than this one.
Daniel Warren Johnson’s art works well with this type of setting. It looks like a gritty cop action style art that is reminiscent of “Judge Dredd†at its best. That’s not to say there are a few rough spots. One example is when the two main leads are in front of the semi-truck in one panel and then the next panel they are in the truck’s driver’s seat driving down the highway. They are under heavy fire when they do this, by the way.
“The Ghost Fleet #1†is a mediocre start to a comic that might be good. There is very little story, we don’t even know the characters names or what they even are and there is only an inkling of a plot to be told. The art may be the only thing this comic has going for it if the story of the next issues don’t shape up.
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