Whiteout: Melt

Whiteout #2

by Greg Rucka, Steve Lieber (Illustrator)

The sequel to the original groundbreaking series, Melt reteams author Greg Rucka ( No Man's Land, the Atticus Kodiak novels) and illustrator Steve Lieber (Grendel Tales) for another adventure with U.S. Marshall Carrie Stetko on the deadly ice of Antarctica. Winner of a 1999 Eisner Award, Melt is a must-have for the bookshelves of fans of crime fiction and intense graphic storytelling.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Thriller, Graphic Novels Comics

120 pages, Paperback

First published August 4, 2000

About the author

Greg Rucka, is an American comic book writer and novelist, known for his work on such comics as Action Comics, Batwoman: Detective Comics, and the miniseries Superman: World of New Krypton for DC Comics, and for novels such as his Queen & Country series.

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Greg Rucka delivers another Carrie Stetson tale with her companion Antartica. The book is a return and in the afterword the writer explains how hard it is to return to a hit story and give it the same intensity as the original. Hence there never appeared a third installment even if the movie with Beckinsale as Carrie was quite a decent advertisement for the title.
There has been an explosion at a Russian compound on Antarctica, the camp being suspected as a biological arms depot. Carrie is being send to investigate and falls into basement where she finds her Russian counterpart also investigating. It turns out it was a raid on the depot and taking several warheads of the nuclear variety. So Carrie and her Russian counterpart start a chase over the plains of Antarctica . Once again this place of Ice proofs to be the merciless opponent that even the infamous Spetsnaz find to be very dangerous and underestimated environment.

This story works well and is different from the first Whiteout story and does give more information about Antarctica. Both Whiteout stories work for me, and I would not mind a third one. Time Will answer that question.

This second one is well worth your reading time as well. Best is reading both after another like I did. The go and watch the movie, which is good and Kate Beckinsale is quite dishy to enjoy.

[Sooraya Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as intense as the first book. Regardless, I somewhat enjoyed this one more.
Panels are lighter making for an easier read. And that's always good.

[Jonathan Maas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like Whiteout 1, but a more straightforward tale

Whiteout 1 was great, though it was a tale filled with countless suspects, and odd motives.

Whiteout: Melt is a more straightforward tale.

A Russian base in Antarctica was attacked, and Carrie must team up with another Russian to find out what happened.

There is quite a bit of danger.

And that is it! In a sense I kind of prefer it to Whiteout 1, but if I were you, I'd read both.

[Lukasz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cool, black&white, and straightforward.

A spy thriller and chase across Antarctic Ice and deadly crevasses.

I loved simple art and the fast-paced plot.

Quality stuff.

[47Time · Rating 5 out of 5]

Antarctica was apparently pretty important in the last century. The conflicts of the earlier half of the XXth century were ended with the 1961 treaty signed by most nations of the world to not bring any conflict into Antarctica. Now a secret group has decided to start a conflict in a Russian outpost, determining the US to bring Stetko out of her vacation. She is promised a reassignment away from Antarctica.

This mission is even more dangerous than in the last volume, but the investigation element takes the back seat to a chase on the unforgiving Ice. Stetko teams up with an unlikely ally that will save her life on more than one occasion.

Stetko has a good rapport with the Russian scientists. Her investigation has her stumbling onto a weapons cache and a nuclear weapon, a clear breach of the 1961 treaty. She finds Aleksandr Kuchin, a secret Russian agent also tasked with investigating the weapons trafficking. He reveals that the Speznaz and Russian mafia are behind it all.

Stetko and Aleks follow the Speznaz agents and both parties are stopped by a storm. While the Speznaz have a hard time of it, Stetko's igloo holds the warmth better. And she gets some too. Aleks has the nerve to leave the igloo while Stetko sleeps. Talk about wham, bam, thank you, ma'am.

Aleks is captured by the Speznaz, but Stetko catches up to him. Together they kill the enemy agents. She decides to allow Aleks to recover the weapons for the Russians even if that means she won't get reassigned.

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a sequel to the Whiteout novels. I have more details about it in the first book so you should check out that review for additional information.

So as to not repeat myself this is a return to the U.S. Marshall (Carrie Stetko) banished to Antarctica who has grown fond of it yet finds herself embroiled in something no longer local but international. I found the tale fun enough but nowhere near as good as the first novel which probably explains why a third novel in the series never came out. The first novel had such an intricate and interesting clue trail in a new setting and this second novel just took a basic idea and tried to almost turn it into a mini action film in Antarctica.

Greg Rucka returns as the writer and once more Steven Liever does the artwork. Be warned that it's black and white with focuses on shadows and shading as well as flat out whiteness when covering the landscape of Antarctica.

It won the 2000 Eisner Award for Best Limited Series (Wiki source).

ARTWORK PRESENTATION: B to B plus; STORY/PLOTTING: B minus; CHARACTERS/DIALOGUE: B minus to B; OVERALL GRADE: B minus to B; WHEN READ: mid July 2012.

[Sesana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whiteout: Melt returns to the Antarctic with the same lead character as the previous volume, Marshall Carrie Stetko. This time, the mystery is much less of one, and more of an espionage story. And actually, I was fine with that. We all know that Rucka can write a spy tale. And like the previous volume, there was a solid enough background of fact that this particular spy tale was entirely believable. This could actually happen. May have already happened. But realism isn't enough to carry a story, and Carrie remains as compelling a narrator as previously. A bit more historically minded, sure, but that's really fascinating history she's spouting. And even more so than in Whiteout, the driving force, more than anything else here, is the Ice itself. It's a fantastic read, but it left me hoping that Rucka stops while he can, before the series starts to go downhill. Because I really can't imagine it getting much better than this.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rucka does a better job in this book making you feel what it's like to be on the ice - how bitterly cold, unforgiving, deadly, desolate. Somehow the contrast of the impersonal behemoth of nature at its deepest works well against the hot seethe and cold calculations of Carrie Stetko. I wouldn't want to hang around this woman for very long, but I'd sure want her on my side.

I wish I had half the bravery/stupid perseverance that she brings to the job. I'm basically a lazy guy, and though I'll keep kicking at a problem, I'll give in when I see what the long game will turn out to be, and only when I get pissed about it will I take another kick at the can. (Or so I tell myself.) Maybe Carrie just keeps that pissed-off-ed-ness in a jar and sucks on it day and night.

[Albert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Marshall Carrie Stetko is back and this time she needs to stop a rogue band of Russian assassins from stealing hidden cache of nuclear weapons in Antarctica and getting them off the continent.

This sequel to Whiteout is as good as the first and just as entertaining. Another good book by Greg Rucka.

[Janne Paananen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whiteoutin jatko-osalle käy valitettavasti niin kuin liian usein jatko-osille tai sarjojen kakkososille käy. Se tuntuu vanhan idean pyörittelyltä hieman eri näkökulmasta.

"Uusi" näkökulma on tällä kertaa se, ettei tutkitakaan murhaa (joskin ruumiita syntyy kyllä reilusti) vaan jahdataan varkaita, jotka ovat vohkineet jään alle piilotetut venäläiset ydinaseet. Toki kansainvälisesti on sovittu, ettei Etelänapamantereella minkäänlaisia sotilaallisia välineitä suvaita. Noh... eihän se toki ole ennenkään estänyt muutamaa ydinkärkeä väärään paikkaan jemmaamasta.

Etelämantereen poikkeukselliset olot ovat niin ydinasevarkaiden kuin heitä jahtaavan kaksikon pahin vihollinen. Tämä on albumin ydinsanoma ja aivan hyvä idea. Muutoin juoni on perushuttua.

Pidin historiallisista faktaosioista, joita tarinaan oli ripoteltu. Samoin piirrosjälki alleviivasi sopivasti karuja oloja. Mutta kokonaisuutena valitettavan perinteinen kakkososa.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wait, wait, wait...Antarctica, a hardass protagonist, Russians, AND nukes?

I find the fact that this exists hilarious. I'm sad there aren't more of these because this is amazing.

Also, just nitpicking here, but I feel like if you left a nuke in negative 80 degree weather you might ruin it. Seems like a bad move.

[Erin O'Mahony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Volume 2 wasn't as good as Volume 1. The story we by quickly with much less interaction between characters, more action or pans of scenes. These can be fantastic, but without the substance in between, it was left wanting.
This was still an enjoyable read, just not as captivating as the first installment.

[dejah_thoris · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first volume is more of a mystery whereas this one is a simple espionage operation. My comments regarding the use of black and white to depict the Antarctic landscape are still valid even if the plot has changed significantly.

[Ademption · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars rounded up.

[Terry Murphy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a tough volume to grade.

While it's much shorter and more action-oriented than the first volume, it was also better in some ways.

It's conflicting because what made the first volume a hit, and what also made it special for me was the murder mystery bend. And yet, this book seems to be in a hurry.

Carrie Stetko is not nearly as engaging a character. The surrounding cast is anemically presented, and the story is little more than an excuse for some action set-pieces.

And still...I can't deny that I enjoyed it more than the preceding volume.

It's very certainly worth a read, but don't be surprised if it what drew you in the first time is utterly absent this time around.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Not quite as good as the last book but still entertaining. There was a law past saying that no guns or military bases or maneuvers were to be in Antarctica. It was discovered that awhile back, the Russians secretly had a bunch of AK-47s hidden there along with some nukes.......and the nukes had been taken. Carrie was back in the warm world on vacation and was approached by her higher ups to cut her vacation short and head back to Antarctica to track these suspects down. This book was straight up Carrie Stetko vs the wild of Antarctica. The writing by Rucka still shines as well as Liebers art. The reason this didn’t get a 4 star rating from me was that I felt the book ended too abruptly for me and was not as satisfying as the end of the last book. Still an enjoyable read tho.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

A worthy sequel to the original Whiteout. I'm only giving it 3* though because I feel that the story was too short and not fleshed out as well as the first. It actually makes you wish that this was a monthly series so you can get further into the story. Leiber's artwork was even better than the 1st.

[Noah Appelbaum · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this even more than the first book, though it felt too short and a little lean in its plot development in comparison. The art in this is really incredible; it feels like Lieber is pushing the limits of black and white technique to expand what is possible to communicate (which, if you read the back matter, it sounds like he pushing pretty far out there).

[Ira · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as good as the original, but still enjoyable.

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5. I read these years ago and remember liking them more. Solid but not awesome.

[Fizzgig76 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reprints Whiteout: Melt #1-4 (September 1999-February 2000). When the Russian mafia attacks an Antarctic Russian base, they escape with a secret cache of weapons that could mean doom. Carrie Stetko finds herself called back to Antarctica for another mission that could be the key to her returning home…but also could mean teaming with a Russian soldier and putting herself in more danger than she’s ever been before!

Written by Greg Rucka, Whiteout—Volume 2: Melt is a spy thriller limited series published by Oni Press and a sequel to Whiteout from 1998. The series was awarded a Eisner Award for Best Limited Series and features art by Steve Lieber. The series was also collected as part of the Whiteout Compendium.

Whiteout was a fun mystery thriller. It featured a killer, danger, and detective work. Carrie went through hell in the story, and it seems like she would have earned her way out of Antarctica. This made Whiteout—Volume 2: Melt a bit of a question mark when you finished Whiteout. Despite this, Rucka and Lieber craft a compelling story that is very different than the first entry in the series.

The story is more of a morality tale and a tale of strength by Carrie. Carrie was proven intelligent and resourceful in Whiteout, but here, she proves that she’s even smarter than most of the people around her. Carrie finds herself forced to make tons of choices of loyalty and she manages to do it while still demonstrating her power. Carrie seems to be calling the shots in a majority of the book and even the few times where she is saved, she must act fast to keep herself alive. She has to choose between allegiance and her own conscience, and it is an interesting path.

The Russian mafia mercenaries are barely a threat. They shoot, they blow things up, and they kill, but it really feels like (as with Whiteout) that the danger is land. With this in mind, it becomes about the relationship between Kuchin and Carrie, and if they can trust each other long enough to finish the job. The ice brings people together and separates them.

With nice solid black-and-white art by Steve Lieber, Whiteout—Volume 2: Melt is a solid follow-up to a good series. The release of the movie Whiteout tarnished the image of the two series, but it deserves to be read and enjoyed (just ignore the movie). Carrie is an interesting character, and I would love to see an older, even more jaded Carrie return. Plans for a third Whiteout series (tentatively called Whiteout: Thaw) were in the works, but as of now, nothing has developed.

[Alex E · Rating 3 out of 5]

Marshall Carrie Stetko returns to the ice to investigate another crime in Antartica. With the stakes considerably higher, she has to navigate the situation carefully, or perish as a result.

I think Rucka did the smart thing by having the sequel of Whiteout be similar, but up the ante on the plot itself, when returning to this world. Because this time, its not just a murder mystery with an escalating body count. It has to do with a team of hired spetnaz stealing a nuclear warhead. Yeah, so much higher stakes this time. But more so than the danger, its the state of Carrie that has evolved as well. Where the first book has her as very closed off and reserved to her lot in life, this one has her hoping for more. A government official promises to lift her exile if she accomplishes her task, which Carrie looks forward too. She also allows her self to connect to another person in this book that was as unexpected for us as it is to her. But it just shows you how she is "coming out of her shell" so to speak. But will it work, and will it last? Those questions linger at the end.

The art by Steve Lieber was hit and miss for me. Sometimes it was perfectly in tone with the story and able to cohesively give us the storytelling beats. However sometimes the art was too murky for my tastes. There's segments that lose that cohesiveness that I mentioned, for the sake of a stylistic choice in the art. The art is not at all bad, but the confusing nature of it at times took me out of the story.

Overall, a good sequel to the original. If you like high stakes crime books, check this out.

[Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

While not as thrilling or mystery-driven as the first Whitehout, it's still nice to see Rucka return to the character of Carrie Stetko. Rucka clearly loves this character, and gives her a great arc in this book that doesn't involve her getting the shit kicked out of her quite so much. Also, with the intensity dialed back, Rucka can spend more time exploring Antarctica as the insane snow desert that it is, and his well-researched commentary on the place really drives home just how insurmountable the place can be.

All that said, the story is a little too straightforward for my taste. While I certainly enjoyed it, I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. In the story, a bunch of Russian separatists destroy a Russian base in Antarctica, making off with some hidden nukes. Carrie and a Russian GRU agent are tasked with tracking them down and bringing them in. From here, it's mostly just about Carrie and the Russian agent tracking them down. The dialogue is solid and the details about the Antarctic climate are great, but the story is pretty much on rails. The stakes never quite seem to be as high as they should, and as things approach an ending, they never really escalate. Things just kind of happen and then it's over.

This is definitely worth a read if you were a fan of the first volume, just for the characters and setting alone. But I can't get excited about it much beyond that, unfortunately.

[Michael Emond · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the follow up to the critically acclaimed graphic novel Whiteout by the same team of Rucka and Leiber. Carrie the US Marshall is called back into duty - this time to investigate a fire at a Russian base in the Antarctica. Kudos for Rucka making this book distinct in tone and story from the previous novel. It isn't just more of the same. Before we had a mystery but this time we have a manhunt across the wasteland of the Antarctic. Once again the setting plays a huge role in making this story so entertaining. My favourite touch was the idea that the Antarctic and its conditions are more dangerous to the criminals on the run than Marshall Carrie and her Russian companion.

I still don't actually know much about Carrie or really like her character but once again the story is so compelling and well researched that I enjoyed it despite this. I will say this story did feel a little more sparse than the first one - i.e. I read through it even faster.

Overall, I'm glad these creators revisited this character/setting - it was another enjoyable read.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sometimes I really wonder at award givers. This won the 2000 Eisner Award for Best Finite/Limited Series. Yeah … okay … so do not agree.

Having just read Whiteout, I was primed and ready for another moody-Marshal-Carrie-kicks-ass adventure. Was it good? Yes. Was it lacking? Hell yeah. I felt info-dropped (so many “this is what has happened on Antarctica” details that did not seem necessary – wasted frames IMHO). Then, I was plopped into a scene and yanked out again … rinse and repeat. The ending? You have got to be kidding me? I don’t even know this character very well and I have a hard time believing this. Tons of potential but deficient in follow-through.

You know, it really is okay to make a graphic novel longer than 125 pages (this was a mere 110). This story begged for more pages. Stop caving to an “industry standard.”

[Zedsdead · Rating 4 out of 5]

Carrie Stetko is called to action once again, this time to investigate the slaughter of a Russian science outpost (and the suspected theft of illicit WMDs). If she can recover the weapons and embarrass Russia, she's promised a ticket off the ice and back to the US.

Rucka loves Antarctica, liberally anthropomorphizing (and capitalizing) "the Ice". He works in numerous lectures on Antarctic geology, history, climatology, and, uh, survivology. It made for an interesting seminar.

He also has a tendency to slide into melodramatic pronouncement mode.

"My gut says this is right. My gut says this is what I need to do. All my time here, I've never tested the ice. Never tested myself against it. On it.

I have to do this."

Bleah. Rucka writes well most of the time. This is a bad habit he needs to shake.

[Joe Kucharski · Rating 4 out of 5]

re-read from 2000

Whiteout is a masterful and claustrophobic mystery set in the nearly-unliveable environs of Antarctica. Written by (at the time) comic-novice Greg Rucka with art by superstar-in-the-making Steve Lieber, Whiteout hit the scene as fresh as new fallen snow and possessed that great indie comics feel.

Whiteout: Melt is a summertime, blockbuster sequel. Although still a compelling and entertaining read by both Rucka and Lieber, Melt is more of a straightforward story with all the trimmings (read: shoot 'em ups) that a sequel can afford.

if Whiteout is a black-and-white Hitchcockian thriller, Melt is a Tony Scott action flick in THX. Entirely entertaining and definitely a fun read, but not quite as surreptitious as its progenitor.

[Mayank Agarwal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the Ice

We are back to Antarctica with the same lead and a new adventure. This time around it’s a straight storytelling without any suspense or mystery, more an action thriller, I for one enjoyed it. While I found the plot to be farfetched, the chase itself and the narrative experiences of travelling the Icey continent is interesting and entertaining. The best part for me is Antarctica, it was fun to learn interesting facts about the place and how badass it is. The trivia and historical facts we learn of the place are awesome.

The art is also a lot better this time around, Lieber art of black and white sketches are more refined, a lot like manga.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lieber does a fantastic job here, probably better than he did in the first Whiteout book, taking advantage of the wide open space of Antarctica in ways that the more cramped indoor settings of the first book didn't allow.

The plot here is much more straight-forward. There's no real mystery - it's just a chase across the desolate, dangerous expanse of frozen ice, but that works better than the first book's mystery, which relied on getting some investment in the largely forgettable suspects and characters. Here, Rucka basically allows Carrie and the ice to carry everything, and the result is a crisp, taut thriller of a chase.

[Mark Schlatter · Rating 4 out of 5]

The followup to Rucka's and Lieber's Whiteout, this volume focuses more on the wilderness of Antartica ("the Ice") and less on the stations on the continent. In particular, Rucka takes great delight is showing all the ways that wilderness can kill someone.

It's a chase novel, wonderfully done, as protagonist Stetko and an ally chase a team of elite Russian soldiers across the ice in order to retrieve [message redacted]. And that chase is the best bit of both Whiteout novels. Sadly, I don't like the ending much at all.