Published, Created, Written & Illustrated by Evan Derian
Here’s another perfect example why you need to hit up conventions and the Artist Alley folks. I found this because a friend of mine was selling these for Evan at the Cincinnati Comic Expo and just the cover alone featuring John F. Kennedy and Abraham Lincoln was enough to grab my attention. Then flipping through it I found myself drawn to Evan’s interior illustrations which have this great black and white sketch quality to them and I knew I had to have the first issue to read. Folks I know many people are hesitant to try self published books but this is where the real heart and soul of the industry lies these are labours of love and the storytelling features great talent you normally aren’t exposed to!
So think about it what do these two Presidents have in common 100 years apart from each other. They were both assassinated and were both considered to be great men. So how on Earth would they end up in a book together? Evan takes science to a logical place and are regenerated material of dead men, yeah sounds like a zombie thing doesn’t it but let me tell you who cares they have been grown, cloned or made from tissue samples this concept and the science involved is fascinating. It really makes me think of the whole we never asked if we should do it we did it because we could mentality that is so prominent in mankind.
The opening of this series is what gets you and after that we see the beginnings of the story unfold. It really does border genius in it’s conception, execution and enjoyment level. JFK is driving a rusted ‘72 Cadillac running from the Secret Service while Lincoln with an arm tattoo proclaiming Emancipator going down his arm is keeping them and the FBI off their tail. Turns out the 16th President of the United States is a crack shot with modern guns and while his speech pattern is definitely befitting the era he lived his enjoyment of modern armory devices is clearly evident.
Think of it these two men known for the greatness and the all too short lived tenures of their Presidencies together on the run from scientists and the government alike is a modern Thelma and Louise with a huge twist. What’s not to like about it, they’ve got to come to terms that they didn’t just wake up from their assassination attempts and the lies the doctors, see scientists, have been telling them and strike out on their own and live their lives in the here and now. All the while being hunted because well let’s face it they shouldn’t exist in this era let alone at all. That however is half the intrigue factor here!
While part of me hopes that we’ll see Evan explore the science used in bringing these men back to life the other part of me is just hoping for a massive media backlash that both men are alive and running around in what could be considered a crime spree! Two very much dead on lookalikes, to the media anyway, who happen to be the real McCoy’s are shooting ordinance in public in what i’m assuming is a stolen car and this is just the beginning. We’ve still got to learn why this happened and what organization was behind not only financing it but what their real endgame is in having this kind of technology available to them.
This is beyond a shadow of a doubt one of those rare instances that redefines your comic book reading experience. I can’t wait to see what happens next now to get ahold of the other issues available.