Review by Ian Keogh
Hana and Toto are Scavengers, sent back to the past in a nicely distinctive VW camper van to acquire valuable items before returning to the future. They’re sent to remote areas to avoid being seen, yet it can still be a dangerous job due to the presence of Specters, forms of human with their heads replaced by other objects. They break down into two categories, the Avengers far more dangerous than the Floaters. It’s a viable set-up given an extra level of creepiness by the short text paragraphs Ryo Furube inserts between chapters giving background details about how Scavengers are recruited. These, though, bear reading as this is a complex story, and the more information you have, the more you’ll understand.
Furube draws their world in insane detail, Toto’s wrench weapon shown down to the last rivet, rubble is supplied down to individual pebbles and the amount of splintering glass is beyond belief. It contrasts the simplicity with which the people are drawn, although once they climb into their spacesuits the detail returns. Scavengers specialises in disorientation, with strange localised changes in gravity a feature, and they’re emphasised by Furube switching between a grey wash style of art and more traditional black and white linework.
Once the parameters have been established, most of this opening volume concerns the Scavengers trapped in the past, their gravity altered and targeted by a persistent Specter. Conversations punctuate bursts of action, both to explain more about what’s happening and to express the fears of young women who felt themselves protected from such situations. It’s the worst case scenario risk of a job that can be very lucrative.
Scavengers is one strange and unique graphic novel, not least for all the primary characters being women. Beyond that Furube’s concepts maximise the possibility of weirdness. Given what’s introduced in this opening volume there’s plenty of conceptual mileage going forward, stunning art and likeable characters. It’s a winner. On to Scavengers: Another Sky 02.
