Boom! Studios 2016
Written by Jackson Lanzing & Collin Kelly
Illustrated by Marcus To
Coloured by Irma Kniivila
Lettered by Jim Campbell
Someone hijacks the ship and takes the team to an unknown section of space, where they come face-to-face with the powerful aliens that humanity encountered when they first left Earth...and the reason the SafeSky was built.
Ironic that i’m reading this on the day Carrie Fisher passes away as in its own way this book very much as that Star Wars feel to it with the characters and their time spent in space exploring the universe and discovering who they are amid so much turmoil. While I’d like to say that’s why I got emotional reading this it really is a testament to Jackson and Collin’s storytelling. The way they are fleshing out these kids and showing us their bonds of friendship and coming into their own as adults well it’s just extremely powerful stuff.
We can understand Kolstak’s desire for vengeance against those that destroyed his world and his family. His friendship with Catrin however also shows us how he’s got within him the capacity for overcoming it whether or not he wants to see that. That the creatures that did this to him and his people would be the same ones that Humans encountered so long ago that they decided to try and hide themselves away from the galaxy is well played. That connection which binds them in ways they never really realised only makes the writing of this that much stronger.
I still have this weird affinity for Dewydd and his unrequited love for Uma. Though I have to say that the more Uma embraces who she is and her role as Captain the more I can see what he sees in her. That she loves Catrin shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone but hey we kinda figured that out from her friendship and keeping Dewydd at a distance the way she has. That she’s willing to do what she does here for the sake of her friends well it’s the most revealing aspect of her character that could ever be displayed.
Marcus and Irma’s work on the interiors here are superbly done. The use of colours when it comes to the Supervoid or the creature in the ship it’s just so eerily stunning. The use of page layouts through angles, perspective and the backgrounds here are so well utilised. The faces, facial expressions and body language reveal as much about them as the words do.
This story is so amazingly well told. From its conception to its execution this series has managed to capture the imagination, mind and heart of it’s readers. There’s so much going on here that continually reaffirms why I think this may be among the best new series of 2016 and why it went from a limited series to an ongoing series. The exploration of not only a new reality but of themselves for these kids is so relatable to.
This is one of the most amazing series you’ll read.