Tart #4 Review: Submerged Part 1

A couple of months ago, I recommended the Indie Comic, Tart.  At the time of my review for the first volume, which contained issues 1-3, Issue 4 was in the process of being sent out to those who participated in the Kickstarter campaign.  I have a friend who knows my love for comics, and for strong, awesome women in comics in particular, so she was nice enough to send me a signed copy of both the original and alternate cover versions.

The art for Issue 4, which was drawn by Ludovic Sallé, is gorgeous. I have always enjoyed the art in this series, but Sallé really went above and beyond with Submerged Part 1.  There is so much attention to detail, and each character and scene is beautifully drawn, so you don’t get the impression that this was just thrown together by any means.  In my opinion, the art is worth the purchase alone.  I will warn that some of the artwork does include partial nudity in case you decide to read this at work.

In Submerged Part 1, we get more of an inside look at the demon hunting group known as The Toxic Fruit and the women involved.  Tart and her colleagues train to be more efficient at fighting demons while getting to know each other a little bit better. We find out that Tart was tragically murdered, but she does not know who killed her. This issue also features a strong woman of color who goes off on her own adventure into Hell to track down and kill a demon.  One of the highlights of this issue for me was the epilogue, which featured the “mother” of The Toxic Fruit and a cute chibi demon. This issue also featured some great dialogue. My favorite line was, “If I couldn’t make a devil hate me – at least part of the time – I’d question myself.”

Tart continues to be a comic that I really enjoy reading.  Each adventure brings something new and different.  This issue in particular grabbed my interest because it dabbled a bit more into just what The Toxic Fruit are as an organization and how their group was formed.  My only complaint is that most of the action in this issue happens with characters other than Tart.  I personally can’t wait to read about Tart’s next mission.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who longs to see more strong women featured in a positive light in comics. This is also a great comic for anyone who enjoys demon-hunting adventurers.  Tart Issue #4 can be purchased from Comixology.  Also, be on the lookout for an interview with Tart‘s author Kevin Joseph, coming to The Geekiary soon!

Author: Jessica Rae

Jessica has a BA in music with an emphasis in voice and spends her day typesetting, editing, writing, and moderating webinars. Jessica primarily reviews anime and comic book series. She also offers insights on various movies, books, games, and other geeky topics.

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