Review: New York 1947
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Rating 3 out of 5 |Grade: C+; Atmospheric
New York 1947 is a prequel side story to the main story of Block 109.
In an alternate timeline, following the assassination of Hitler in 1942, Heinrich Himmler assumes power and turns Germany into a more efficient war machine. Renamed as Germania, Himmler & the newly established Teutonic Order led by Hochmeister Zytek develop automatons, advanced aircraft & the crown jewel, successfully completed a thermonuclear weapon by 1945.
Having no qualms about human life, Germanian high command dropped a nuclear arsenal onto Great Britain & North America, utterly annihilating majority of the allies.
The Island of Manhattan, initially left untouched due to its isolation, is used as testing ground for the new viral bioweapon developed by the Nazis, which can turn men into raging, mindless berserkers thirsting for human flesh.
It is the year 1947, and a small group of elite Nazi operatives are dispatched to the ruins of Manhattan. Inhabited by rugged survivors & blood thirsty mutants, the group's objective is to retrieve a package of some importance, from a sealed vault at the heart of the city.
Over the course of their mission, we get to learn more of the members, as well a the continued devastating state of affairs in this new depressing apocalyptic world.
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There is nothing much to say about the plot of the graphic novel. A companion piece for Block 109, there are few characters which pertain to the main story, and some of the plot points would only make sense if you have read the main story first. I do suggest that you do so, as Block 109 is a surprisingly entertaining read.
The art style of the comic appears to have improved from the original, taking a more detailed & refined lines and more use of muted colors to get emphasis across. More than anything the illustrator manages to create the depressing, hopeless and terror inducing atmosphere of the plague ridden ruins of Manhatten, which just a few years back, was one of major bastions of modern civilization.
The action scenes, while intermittent are not cluttered (Except towards the end); there are panels where the entire page is filled with action, but no dialogue, but is able to convey the intended emotion well.
The climax does leave you puzzled at the plot twist, which again only makes sense if you know the main story, and are acquainted with the character of Paul/ Zytek. Speaking of Zytek, although his appearance is brief, the story also adds a small new layer to the personality of the character, and helps us understand the sort of person that he is, and the terrible decisions he comes to make.
There is nothing interesting to say about rest of the roster of characters. Their only purpose is to serve the narrative for the duration of the story, without leaving any lasting impact.
It's an Ok read, not one which everyone might enjoy.
P.S. I might be fetishizing it at this point, but for being a bunch of genocidal homophobic anti-Semitic racist, damn do the Germans know how to design a uniform, or a 20 foot mech armor. If the war was about who was the most well dressed, well groomed army, the Germans would win by a longshot. Also, Germans and the allies duking it out over fashion outfits seems like a good plot for the next big Shonen manga, write it down.
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