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2012: Final Prayer

By Philip Schweier
December 24, 2009 - 10:37

2012: Final Prayer is an anthology based on the end of the world as we know it. It capitalizes on the premise that the Mayan calendar ends on Dec. 21, 2012, heralding the end of the world in one form or another. While I will grant the notion has apocalyptic overtones, I can't help but imagine that in the future, some alien archaeologist may discover one of our calendars, and draw the conclusion that we believed the world to end Dec. 31. Sure, the calendar ends, but that's not to say it doesn't start over again.

The stories represent a broad range of end-of-the-world scenarios, from creepy and spooky, to thought provoking to dark humor. My personal favorite is “2012: Apocalypse in Five Parts,” by Shamere Borg and Xander Bennett, with art and lettering by Melanie Cook, which tells simultaneous narratives, each with its own individual outcome. Overall, the stories are varied, with something to appeal to just about everyone.

The art also varies, in levels of draftsmanship, but I don't see that as a bad thing. As whole, the book displays a broad range of professional level, but nothing amateurish. Novice and inexperienced perhaps, but the art consistently rises to a professional level, which indicates to me that each of the artists who participated in the book have the potential to do well for themselves as a professional comic book illustrator. Some of them have yet to fully mature in style, and a few just need a little more seasoning, but all artists start somewhere. 2012: Final Prayer is a book each should be proud to feature in their professional portfolio.

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12