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"We need you, Doctor. Get to the central terminal NOW!"
It's been a pretty fantastic time for sci-fi these past couple of years, especially in comic books. Saga has been a monumental reason for that, Warren Ellis' Trees offers a unique take on an alien invasion and the resurgence of the Star Wars universe is here, whether you like it or not. Now I'll admit that I may be coming to this conclusion a bit prematurely, but I really believe Descender has the potential to be one of the best ongoing science fiction books out right now.
Jeff Lemire starts us off on the planet Niyrata, the "technological and cultural hub of the group of nine Core Planets", all of which comprise the United Galactic Council. This can be compared to a kind of interplanetary United Nations. It was a day just like any other, pedestrians weaving between each other and the streets and skies filled with commuters (hover cars!) A Galactus-sized robot loomed over the planet and changed their world as they knew it.
I really like the world that Dustin Nguyen has constructed. It's everything you would imagine a futuristic city would look like. From the awesome hovercrafts to the coexistence between humans and many different kinds of alien life. It instantly makes me think of the Citadel in the Mass Effect video game series. And of course, who can forget the robots?
What you're seeing above is the TIM-21 series android, ten years after the catastrophic event brought on by the giant robot from earlier. This TIM-21 is reunited with his robotic sidekick in this panel. Personally, I don't think you can ever have too much robot sidekick (Claptrap or R2-D2 anyone?) Dustin Nguyen's art so far has really stood out to me. It's not often you see this watercolor-esque style art in a science fiction book. To me, it contrasts the idea of this futuristic universe in a way that's really fun to watch and the colors splash beautifully against the light backdrop.
Overall I had a really good time reading this issue. The potential story ahead is exciting to me, and the pages are wonderful to look at. But don't take my word for it, go out and get the book for yourself.
Favorite Quote: "The council is in a panic. They've scrambled all available UGC warships and are waiting to launch a full assault if we can't figure out what the hell these things are."
What's up everybody. My name is Nico, and about a year and a half ago I got heavy into reading comic books. I was more of a casual reader than anything before that. I'd pick up Batman trades now and then, maybe some random Spider-Man comics my little brother had laying around, but never really expanding my scope beyond that.
I've always had a love for Batman, though. As a young'n, my parents bought me Batman action figures, pajamas, lunch boxes, and pretty much anything else that would solidify me as hot shit on the playground. My desire to punch bad guys more often got me sent to the Principal's office than being widely recognized by my local police department, but I digress.
When I heard that Marvel was relaunching The Amazing Spider-Man, I figured this would be the best time to dive head-first into the world of comics, not knowing the full extent of the pleasure and excitement you can get from reading a 30 page book with cool drawings in it. I was instantly hooked. Every Wednesday was a new adventure from a different part of whatever world I chose. The grimy streets of Gotham, New York City's ever-eventful alleys crawling with life, or worlds I've yet to experience like the small town of Buckaroo, Oregon or our cosmic neighbor Mars, The Red Planet.
This is an introduction to what I hope will be an enjoyable reading experience. Maybe it'll persuade you to pick up an underrated book you hadn't given a second glance, or make you steer clear of a series you were skeptical about in the first place. I'll be giving my personal and honest opinions on a book each week. I'll give a little of the synopsis without being a spoiler and commenting on the art. I'm not sure which books I'll be reviewing or how I'll determine which ones I do each week. My plan is to take a different book off my weekly pull list and throw a review up for it. We'll see where that takes us. I'll try my best to make this a weekly thing. Having a job that works me 40-60 hours a week an hour away and being in school may make it somewhat difficult but I will do my best.
Alright guys. Shutting it down for now. I hope you'll check it out! Follow me on Twitter for opinionated babble about rarely anything of any real importance or substance @BiGNasty91_
Sequence Terminated (yeah I'm gonna need to think of a better sign-off)
Black Science, Volume 1: How To Fall Forever
Rick Remender is an incredible writer known for his series Fear Agent and his fantastic run on Uncanny X-Force. Black Science is a Sci-Fi series he is currently doing through Image Comics, with art provided by Matteo Scalera and Dean White. This volume collects issues 1-6. The story centers around Grant McKay and his group of scientists that have created a machine called the Pillar, which is able to punch holes through dimensional walls. They unwillingly get sent jumping through different dimensions, with no control over where they will be transported. To make matters worse, Grants kids have accidentally been dragged along for the ride and someone in the group has sabotaged the Pillar. During the travels the group encounters an array of strange creatures like frog people, fish people, robo indians and white apes. Grant isn't what you would call the hero type, he is actually a complete asshole. You lean towards sympathizing with him because he definitely feels bad about it, but he can't help it. There is a lingering sense of distrust and resentment within the group. Between Grants kids being angry with his shortcomings as a father and the man who financed the Pillar wanting it to fail, their is a lot of tension. The action is fast paced and exciting from the first page to the last, and Matteo and White do a great job of creating bizarre and colorful atmospheres in each of the dimensions. You can definitely tell the story and art are heavily influenced by those old pulp science fiction novels. I highly recommend checking this book out. I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to reading Vol.2, which just recently came out.
Thanks for reading
Peace
