Federal Bureau of Physics continues this month with the addition of a new character to the team! How will Rosa Reyes fare on her first day with the FBP?
Positives
Well done, Simon Oliver. FBP has been a bit of a “sausage fest” up until now. Rosa Reyes is a breath of fresh air for the title, though she still remains shrouded in mystery.
Creating an interesting, three-dimensional female character in comics can be quite a feat these days. Gone are the days when a character could be “interesting” just by being physically tough (read for examples and laughs: “A Day In the Life of An Empowered Female Heroine”). Lately, the trend seems to veer more towards making them “quirky” or “weird”—think Kat Dennings’ character in Marvel’s “Thor”—and while FBP‘s Rosa Reyes is certainly an oddball, she’s not quite “indie” either.
Oliver sidesteps these narrative norms and makes Reyes a bit of an awkward introvert. She eats at the same crappy diner every week and the wait staff comments on how she always orders the same thing. She isn’t one for small talk and when she does attempt it, she fails miserably. It makes sense that Cicero hired her—he must’ve seen a bit of a kindred spirit in Ms. Reyes.
Oliver also introduces the reader to a new sort of physics conundrum with this issue: time disturbances. “Time dilation” is an event where time waxes, wanes, and moves at abnormal intervals. In the FBP universe, it’s caused by dark matter build up. This may sound heady, but Simon Oliver handles it very well; the weighty material never bogs down the plot or character development. It teaches the reader while simultaneously encouraging them to do their own research.
Robbi Rodriguez’s art is another high point for this series. He proved he could do low key character scenes well with issue five and continues that trend here in issue six. The character work feels clean and detailed. Rodriguez switches gears for the “weird event from Rosa’s birth” scene and while it’s a bit confusing what actually transpires, the artwork does work well for the story.
the privatization of Physics insurance story thread continues
Negatives
None to report on this issue. By now readers have decided whether or not this series is for them.
Final Verdict
(4/5)
Simon Oliver and Robbi Rodriguez deliver a great new character in Rosa Reyes and an exciting new issue of FBP. One of the strongest new Vertigo titles being released.
