Ben Dickson can write comics. Falling Sky is all the proof you'd ever need. It's a very professional package, as you'd come to expect from the guys at Scar Comics. At £7.99 it's a hefty price compared to most indie books (and that's probably the biggest criticism I've got) - but it's easily worth it. There's even a soundtrack to go along with it, available online and on CD from conventions!

Now, the meat of it. The story is fantastic, and it's biggest hook. It's what Armageddon could have been, and it's a very plausible storyline (in the event of an asteroid hitting Earth, anyway). The principle characters are Rijuta and Charles Pearson, Charles having been kidnapped right at the start of the book, and Rijuta one of those kidnappers. Essentially Ben gives the reader a perfectly acceptable and realistic way the government would have reacted in the current situation, and builds the characters around that.

One of the main gripes I felt I had with Falling Sky was that, during the middle, nothing really seems to happen. There's a very definite opening, and likewise ending, and the middle is where it sorts of slows down. It's only reading it again I realised that Ben has scripted this perfectly. Throughout the frantic running at the beginning and end, racing through the story, there's almost a calm before the storm, where the characters just slow down, hide-out. I can't fault it, and it's only afterwards you realise how effective that middle of the story actually is.

Ben's artwork here is photo-realistic, but stylised enough so that he does create a very nice, hazy piece. The rushed, cross-lines in the background of many shots and the fuzzy outline around each character constantly create a sense of unease and movement throughout. The middle of the book seems to use these the most, as the slow-down of pace is counter-balanced with an increasing number of these rushed-feeling panels.

Ben Dickson's Falling Sky is a fantastic read. It shows he's got what it takes, and he has a real flair for scripting. Hopefully everything else he does is at the same high standard. Here's to you Ben, for a fantastic comic book.