The Pull List – The Life and Death of Toyo Harada #4
In the past, Toyo Harada’s once was a hippy prophet. Before he was able to lead thousands of lives with the Harbinger organization, he found himself head of a counter-culture community. However, in the present Harada’s life comes to an abrupt end. His second in command Ingrid Hillcraft is given one last order from Harada. The dying man’s final request is to have Ingrid survive this war. However, Ingrid won’t escape without seeking revenge for Angela Vessel’s betrayal. Teaming up with Gravedog, Ingrid sets out to stop Angela from leaving the Harada Headquarters with the stolen psiot technology.
Joshua Dysart breaks up the action and drama by interchanging the past and present of Harada’s complex life. In an unexpected twist, Harada is a flower child in the 60s with a completely different personality. Forgoing the clean-cut looks, packaged into a black suit. Nevertheless, people are naturally drawn to him. In the present, his remaining loyalist fight to protect what is left of his memory. Dysart captures a great reflective narrative that shows the consequences of Harada’s actions.
The artwork is handled by both CAFU and Diego Yapur, with colorist Diego Rodriguez. CAFU’s incredibility expressive designs add a dramatic tone to Harada’s past. Hippie Harada sports long hair, an unkempt beard, and a relaxed attitude. Yapur’s strong focus on action makes the battle sequences explosive and easy to follow. This combination of visuals helps ease and hype up all the story elements at once.
Issue four follows up the shocking twist ending to Harada’s demise from a trap set by Angela Vessel. The tension between Harada and Vessel had reached a breaking point, and only one character was going to walk away from it. Although Harada seemly meets his end, his story is not finished yet. The next issue will be a thrilling page-turner where anything could happen.