Image Credit: Cutaway Comics (Fair Use)

Image Description: The cover of Lytton #2

Tides was provided with a free review copy of the comic

By James Ashworth

After something of a hiatus from the previous issue, Lytton returns for his second outing in Cutaway Comics’ limited series. Following the world building of the first issue, Lytton and Wilson are pursued by policemen and heading underground – but not just for legal reasons.

While the first issue was occupied with the 70’s Noir-esque world that Lytton had come to call home, the second issue is a much more straightforward action set piece. Their pursuit of an alien visitor to Earth begins in typically Saward style, with the splayed out form of a partially-dismembered woman. Fortunately, it turns out there is more to her than meets the eye, but it’s clear that any chance of Saward pulling his punches later in his career are slim to non-existent. The second issue remains very much in keeping with his vision, with Lytton remaining as unpredictable and impassive as ever.

Having said that, and despite the gory opening, the issue is much less violent than the first. As the story follows Lytton and Wilson from the club to an abandoned underground station, there’s little to do except see the pair traverse from point A to point B, with some exceptions. While this may seem a little empty at times, Barry Renshaw’s art continues to impress, with his sharp visual style aligning well with Saward’s storytelling, extending to some unnerving adverts in the aforementioned station. While a little more exposition in the final setting would be useful for characters and plot alike, it’s still perfectly followable.

Once issue two reaches the end of the line, readers will have had another enjoyable adventure with a few choice callbacks to other Doctor Who stories. While the moving of pieces for later in the story may be a little obvious, it does exactly what it needs to do, with an interesting story and compelling artwork to bring the audience along for the ride. There’s also an added extra in a short interview with Phillip Martin, made all the more poignant by his sad passing in December. Striking art, a frisson of action and a topical interview – that’ll do nicely.