Lead Dawn has won a crowd of fans. Can the adaptation of a fragment of this story by Paweł Próba and debuting Krzysztof Tarasiuk arouse the same amount of emotions?
Mutants and zombies
The story contained in the comic book Noc w Zonie is an adaptation of the chapter “Mleczarnia”, which can be found in the book by Michał Gołkowski entitled Lead Dawn . The main character, whose name will not be revealed on the pages of the comic, went to the eponymous dairy to pick up the goods left there by one of his friends. As you know, the Zona is a dangerous place, so the stalker will have to be careful not only of anomalies and mutants, but also of people who turned into zombies under the influence of psionic radiation. It’s a fairly short episode – it only takes thirty-six pages out of seventy-eight.
Loneliness
The main character, as befits a stalker, works alone. A lonely trip to a deserted complex, and a reliable shotgun at hand. Nowhere is safe in the Zone, so the authors tried to reflect the aura of anxiety that prevails in the dairy. You never know what will pop out of the gatehouse, some small service room, etc. Unfortunately, in this case there are no mutants characteristic of this universe. I understand why this particular fragment from Gołkowski’s prose was chosen, but I regret that I did not have the chance to see, for example, a snorkel or a hamburger in action.
The story we already know
Gołkowski created a great story and colorful characters. The adaptation is successful in my opinion, but on the other hand, after all, it’s just a repetition of a short episode from the book. I have to admit that I just missed something. Concept sketches have been added to the comic. In addition, there are also graphics related to the Stalker, but unfortunately most of them have already appeared in other novels from this universe. At the end of the comic we will also find a short fragment of The Land of Evil Charms .
The hidden beauty of the Zone
The graphic design seemed decent at first, but it did not make me too happy. However, after going through the comic a few times, I came to the conclusion that it was a really successful debut. Krzysztof Tarasiuk has found himself in this world perfectly.
Studio JG rose to the occasion – the release is satisfactory. However, in my opinion, the weakest element of this book is the cover; it doesn’t appeal to me at all. It explores everything the comic has to offer. Moreover, in my opinion, Zona is more beautiful in black and white.
Is it worth visiting Zona at night?
It was an interesting experience. I’ve played GSC Game World games, read books related to the Stalker universe, and now it’s comic time. A night in the Zone only awakens the appetite, but does not satisfy it. It shows that fascinating stories could also be created in this medium. Fortunately, the price is not too high for such a thin book, so I think it will be a great item for fans.
