Mechalibre Vol. 1 - Mobile Edition

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Mechalibre Vol. 1
By Eli Green
September 2, 2008 - 10:00

Astrobase 5
Writer(s): Marc Beauchamp, Shawn "Choob" Baichoo
Penciller(s): Marc Beauchamp
Inker(s): Marc Beauchamp
Letterer(s): Marc Beauchamp
Cover Artist(s): Marc Beauchamp
$6, 32pp, Black & White

Maxo Sigurdson is a free agent militant under contract to the Union of Northern Arcologies. In his mech, along with his two raccoon-engineer companions, he is responsible for the safety of Arcology #15, protecting it from whatever danger may come its way. But when a call comes from Union headquarters for him to head over to Arcology #13 to protect a cargo convoy he has no choice but to go. Maxo must make his way to Arcology #13 to save the poorly defended 'noids (robots) from the attacking pirates. The convoy is already under heavy assault, but has little hope for survival, until he arrives. The only question is, why was the convoy so poorly defended?

Marc Beau Champ. has put together a solid introduction to the Mechalibre universe in this first volume. We're given a very minimal and short introduction to Maxo, but it's more than enough because it explains the essentials about the character within the first page. Maxo's raccoon-engineer companions are a little bit more of a mystery. Why they work on his mech, and can talk, is a little beyond me, but we find that there are other talking animals within the Mechalibre universe, so that's fine.

Raccoons

The majority of Vol. 1 surrounds the battle between Maxo and the pirates, so it's a good thing that it was all well presented. I got a really good sense of where everyone was during the battle, and its start, middle and finish, as well as the “battle atmosphere”. The battle also gives a great insight into Maxo's personality while in his mech. He exudes confidence while, simultaneously, keeping constant watch for any damage happening to the mech, making sure the raccoons are on top of things. As a character, he appears quite aware of his environment. He may be stuck in a poor contract job, but he's no fool.

The story itself is quite short. Broken down, it's just an introduction, the battle and then shoots straight to the close, but it works well. Beau Champ's panel flow contributes to this, as the art and text lead us through, page by page. The book also ends with an ever-important cliffhanger, making sure we'll want to know what happens in the next issue. His art however, could use some work. Certain portions of Vol. 1 have a very cool look to them, sometimes whole pages, sometimes just panels, but the majority of the art is lack luster. It's not that I'd be able to say “I could do that,” because I couldn't, but it leaves a lot to be desired. I think Beau Champ would really benefit by taking on a partner to do the art for the coming issues.

Cool panel flow. Not so cool artwork.

At $6, even with no advertising, it's tough to say if Mechalibre Vol. 1 should be picked up. With better art, it would be a sure yes, but with the quality it's at now, this is not something I would have picked up off of the shelf.

6.5/10

Mechalibre and Beau Champ's other works can be found at www.astrobase5.com.