War, as they say, is hell. And when you think of hell, you think of fire, you think of flames, you think of heat.
Not Rob Morrison and Charlie Adlard. No, their hell is winter-white, ice cold, and relentless. WHITE DEATH is the story of Italian and Austrian troops using the Trentino mountain range of Italy and the snow thereon as a weapon of mass destruction during the First World War. Fiendish, horrifying, relentless - and worst of all, true.
The snow and cold of WHITE DEATH, the oblivion of the terrain these men fight on is both a character and a metaphor in Morrison's story as he focuses on the psychosis of the men calling the shots, and the poor bastards forced to their follow orders. Morrison touches on issues of class and nationalism in the trenches, adding layers of depth to his tale. Add to that, Charlie Adlard's work has never looked better. Done with a combination of charcoal and white pastel on gray boards, WHITE DEATH showcases Adlard's art in a remarkable-looking package.
Matt Fraction splits his time between motion graphics and design house MK12, writing comics, and reading comics. He is the author of the graphic novels The Annotated Mantooth and Last of the Independents, both available from AiT/Planet Lar. He can be found on the web at mattfraction.com. His wife is hot.
