by Michael J. Foy

Issue number two is here and I can’t wait to see where the story will lead! So why are we wasting time?! Grab your weapons, and let’s head back to the corrupt United States of America!

Some spoilers may follow, but are at a minimum as usual!

Issue number two finds Snake in the grips of two deranged children who are in charge of the Free Republic of Florida. Looking for someone to lead their army against the rest of the United States of America, they spare his life. What exactly has Snake gotten himself into? And more importantly, will he be able to escape this new city before the big one hits?

‘Escape’ continues to keep the pace up, opting to introduce a lot of new characters in each issue. With only a small few carrying over from issue one, the outside world seems to whiz by. Although I’m enjoying seeing what’s happened to another state, I’m left wondering what the United States Police Force is up to. We get a few tidbits around the middle of the issue, but I would love to see for example Charles Cyphers Secretary of State character plotting to capture Plissken.

It’s an interesting choice not to carry over any of the governmental figures from the film. Two issues in and there is hardly any mention of them. I understand where Snake is physically, which makes it hard for anyone outside of Florida to get there hands on him, but it leaves me wondering. Hopefully in the next few issues, we get to see some more behind the scenes of the United States Police Force, but as of right now, they don’t seem to be too powerful at all.

There is some solid action throughout the entire comic and even a really cool prison. I don’t want to give away where it’s located or what it is exactly, but it’s certainly a pretty clever idea from two 13 year olds. We’re also treated to some of Snake’s tactical training, leading to a very interesting firefight at one point. There’s also a group of survivors trying to make a stand of there own, hopefully we’ll get to see more of them.

Still, one of my biggest questions moving forward is, how exactly does everyone know who Snake Plissken is? And also, how did they all, hear he was dead? I understand these are lines pulled from the film and worked into the series as an ongoing joke, but I would love to see a hint at what this is referring to. I would assume it’s because he was a decorated war hero turned bad, but why not hint at Snake’s past? A back story of sorts might not work on film, but it may work better in comic form. I also think it might be cool to see Snake get involved in some sort of heist, similar to the one he was caught while trying to complete, which landed him in the New York prison. I already know and love the character, but I want to see, not just hear about, why he is the United States greatest outlaw.

One small gripe I still have going, is with Snakes leg. In this issue, we see him briefly getting some medical treatment, but he still doesn’t seem to be slowed down at all by it. His pants also don’t have a hole or blood stain where he was shot (he’s supposed to be wearing the same outfit, imagine the smell!). Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a big deal, but the little things can add up sometimes.

Overall Escape number two is a good read, that slowly starts to paint a picture of this fractured and war driven United States. The artwork is solid and vibrant, with interesting characters and settings. Now that things are starting to heat up, I can’t wait to see where the story will build from here.

Score: 3 ½ Eye Patches Out of 5