The year is 1873. In an alternate reality, where steampunk meets space travel (and dinosaurs!), The foundations of human colonies are laid. The planets of our solar system are successfully annexed, and in some there is life, not necessarily positive towards humans. We are almost immediately thrown into the presented world, getting to know the main heroine of the adventure – Helena Martin, who tries to get her beloved back from the penal colony on Venus.
Cardboard figures cut out
It is with the characters, and especially with their presentation, that the problems begin. If you’ve ever watched an adventure movie, you probably know that before hitting the road etc. etc. In the Venus Chimeras, the procedure of the team performance jumps like a spring ( sticking to steampunk references). One thread is entangled in another, seemingly connecting with the previous one, but when the journey is about to begin, the whole thing functions like a poorly oiled mismatching gear mechanism (I had to). It is hard to believe in caricatured characters, usually endowed with one trait, and this makes us unable to become emotionally attached to any of them. Heroic sacrifices or pathetic speeches sound even more sterile and do not arouse emotions or the will to engage in adventure.
Disney forever alive
The slightly Disney setting makes me quite embarrassed. The title is definitely for older readers, while the dissonance is caused by cartoon visuals, which makes it difficult to take the events presented seriously. On one side, we see a man being eaten by a dinosaur, then we observe a caricatured image of an upper class with raised double chins, suggesting a glamorous life. All this means that the next events, no matter how important they may turn out to be for the plot, we accept with a grain of salt.
A moment of honesty
I admit that I am not very familiar with Castle Star and after reading Venus chimeras I have doubts as to which reader this title is intended for. Judging by the cover – the title for children, analyzing the content – a social commentary for older, more aware readers, inspired by the works of Jules Verne. This is a very important factor because the evaluation perspective depends on it. Unfortunately, this comic book is not able to clearly respond to its intentions towards the recipient. I will try to reach for the next volumes, maybe this is the beginning of something good that will spread your wings in the next parts.
