The Salmon of Doubt
IDW Publishing 2016
Written by Arvind Ethan David
Illustrated by Ilias Kyriazis
Coloured by Charlie Kirchoff
Lettered by Shawn Lee
Plagued by nightmares about a childhood he never had, Dirk Gently discovers that a holistic detective can have more than one past, and his adventures have only just begun…
So this is the issue that blends the television show with the comics franchise to date. Here’s what I’m hoping however, that the comics will stay focused on what’s been and let the television show be it’s own entity because the Dirk I’ve come to know and love has the high hair, is older and whom I’ve become invested in. I like that we’re seeing how the two are able to coexist I just hope one doesn’t replace the other. It’s not that I don’t like the new version because I do I just don’t want the original to disappear because of it that would be a mistake in my opinion.
For those of you who don’t have BBC America or haven’t seen the new show than this will be brand new stuff for you. The story itself is well told, the progression and development here work really well in giving us the characterisation needed to get to know these new characters. Now this obviously takes place before the first episode of the television show so there’s really good backstory going on here that will lead both new and established fans to understanding them better.
There’s a nice creativity in the storytelling where Dirk realises what’s been happening to him with these dreams of a childhood he’s never had. It’s odd and out there but it completely works within his world. So the fact that this story is taking place could mean a lot of different versions of Dirk could be in a multiverse of it’s own so that there are infinite possibilities for storytelling.
I’m a huge fan of Ilias and the work he does on this series. He’s my go to guy when it comes to Dirk and the adult version we’ve grown to love is so iconic looking. His use of page layouts through angles, perspective and the use of backgrounds here do wonders in helping tell the story more fully. I also like that the television folk are recognisable without having to be dead on the actors. Also he’s able to infuse those classic humour moments in all this is instrumental to my thinking of a Dirk Gently story.
One of the things I’ve always enjoyed about the Dirk Gently stories from IDW is that they’ve really managed to stay true to the essence of the character created by Adams. This is no different and while it’s opening up the world of the television show and letting readers know how and why that can coexist alongside the classic version just keeps that spirit alive nicely. The science fiction aspect is wonderfully incorporated.
With strong writing, characterisation and plot development alongside some incredibly good interior artwork this is the kind of stuff that makes Dirk Dirk!