No Winners In This War: A Look Back at Daniel Warren Johnson's "Extremity"

March 7th, 2018 marked a sad day for me and made a permanent change to my monthly schedule. Daniel Warren Johnson concluded his remarkable series Extremity. The twelve issue series follows the character Thea and her father's quest to revenge her mother's death. Johnson explored the truth of how one can lose their soul in their quest for vengeance and how those around them are left to pick up the pieces. The story is beyond the expectations many had for the series that was recently nominated for the Eisner Award for Best Limited Series. With the series coming to an end, I had a weird sense of melancholy after reading the story. Below is a brief look into the issue itself.

Thoughts on the last issue...

One of the first things you notice when you look into this issue is the epic scale of the war being waged. The battle that we are treated to is what the previous eleven issues has preparing us for and it doesn't disappoint. The bombastic fight in the comic was amazing but ends with loss being felt on both sides of the war. The lines animate the urgency and visceral nature of the event and propels you forwards to see what happens next.

Story wise, this final entry felt incomplete but on purpose. The deaths of some of the characters felt tragically poetic. Both sides were consumed with so much anger for their enemy that they lost their lives in the process. Some could argue that they had were souls died before this final battle even began. One character that started to show his warrior spirit was Thea's brother. Rollo also showed that he could be courageous when it counted most, when he had to fight for something that he truly believed in.

From an artistic standpoint, I loved every page. As always, the vibrant lines in Johnson's work continue to provide life to each scene. The colors by Mike Spicer also fleshes out the emotion of each panel. If you just skimmed the pages, you could fill the tension of this final moment and realize that so much was on the line. This is one of the reasons why I love Extremity so much. The story telling was about showing more than simply telling you what happened. Johnson has this way of illustrating emotions that feel so lifelike without too many lines. It's hard to imagine this story being told by another creator.

Extremity is a series that touched me. I wished that it was not a mini series but, according to Johnson, that was the plan at the beginning. Johnson crafted a world that was harsh but a place that I wanted to continue to visit. The story was great, not because of the creatures or mechs, but because of the story of vengeance that feels human and relatable. This comic is a bittersweet ending to a comic that I actually ran to my local comic shop on Wednesday. In the future, I may do a issue by issue breakdown of the series.

Why to continue to Follow Daniel Warren Johnson's work?

This is Johnson's first published self created work. His writing shows that he definitely has a unique voice. As his voice continues to grow in strength, his pencil continues to grow as well. One thing I continue to attribute to Johnson is his ability to illustrate emotion. Some artists and writers try to provide the same emotion over an entire page that Johnson can show in a single panel.

If you're interested in checking our the completed series of Extremity, pick up the Volume One and Volume Two of the trades at your local bookseller or online with a MSRP of $16.99.

Disclaimer: Originally, this review was written in March but was never released. Decided to re-edit the review and finally post it.