Oni Press 2013
Written by Charles Soule
Illustrated by Alberto Jimenez Alburquerque
Coloured by Dan Jackson
Lettered by Crank!
Major Gabriel Drum, previously thought dead after staying behind on an alien construction, landed on Earth, determined to talk to Blades by any means necessary. The news he delivered to Blades was not good—only 666 people will survive the alien encounter. In space, the crew of the Clarke suffered the wrath of the Builders, who cast them back outside the asteroid belt—without Astra.
There are many reasons this series is among those I consider among the best being published today. Chiefly though it’s simply the way that Charles is telling it, well that right after its concept alone. I’m always a fan when Charles manages to put into an issue every aspect of the story like we get here. From seeing the crew of the Clarke to Major Drum with the President as well as the former President and his people underground nothing is left out this issue and it makes for in my humble opinion a great big jumbled mess of completeness.
Charlotte losing Astra to the builders has really pushed her over the edge and it’s utterly fascinating to see her lose it. Okay there really is nothing like a mother’s love and we all know that a mother will fiercely fight for their child so it makes sense but it’s also making her even crazier than ever. She’s not the only one though the crew has been through quite a bit lately and they’ve all changed in way or another and the kind of characterization being brought to us here is charming, interesting and downright scary in what I think of as accurate for their situation. It’s one of the things that really makes this as good a read as it is.
President Blades and his trusted staff being briefed by Major Drum yeah that went as well as could be expected. Now they all know that the builders are out there that isn’t in dispute. So why on Earth do some of these people feel the need to shout out with righteous indignation about their plans as if humans are the end all be all and no one should mess with them. The immediate denial of the situation and the audacity of military folks and religious leaders to think they have the final say is kind of infuriating to me. Then again this is what we all think of when they behave, react and think of situations. So Charles manages to bring to his audience exactly what we all expect and that’s pretty amazing.
Aww poor Astra however is left alone with the builders who have no real understanding of humans or their need for their parents. This isn’t going to bode well for them where this highly advanced infant is concerned. Still seeing her finally like act like an infant and miss her mommy well that’s one of those heartbreaking moments that we’ve had so very few of in this series. I cannot wait to see where it leads.
Francis yeah well that snipped we get of him spinning lies into his own truth yeah that’s pretty amazing. Certifiable or knows more than he lets on is unclear to me but the man definitely has knowledge he shouldn’t have access to. Whether that’s due to his spies or he’s been in contact with the builders that’ll be interesting to learn.
Alberto and Dan’s interiors continue to make this series thrive. The amount of emotion in the characters faces and the way they act/behave, see stance and gestures, really help pull the reader into the story.
Oni Press has one the most interesting, intriguing and downright plausibly entertaining book on stands today.