Titan Comics 2017
Written by Peter Milligan
Illustrated by Alberto Foche
Coloured by Jordi Escuin Liorach
Lettered by Simon Bowland
The Mekon’s last attempt ended in failure and left the evil Treen genius captured and incarcerated on the Moon, undergoing extensive rehabilitation. Since then, a period of peace has reigned throughout the Sol System, and utopia finally seems to be achievable.
But peace comes at a price...
The last time I saw Dan Dare was at Virgin Comics and it was short lived for being hyped as it was. Still the fact that Titan Comics has a nice track record when it comes to taking properties and making them successful gives me hope that this series will find a foothold and flourish. Also, that Great Britain's as a science fiction hero that lasted a good while so that he's back and bringing his special brand of storytelling in that genre is something to be celebrated. It feels like something that would have spawned Buck Rogers and a myriad of other similar ideas.
I like the story we're presented here. Peter pays homage to the past but doesn't want to stay there and instead he's taking this from one point and moving forward. Kind of in the vein of "The New Adventures of" sort of deal and I have to say that this was a smart way to move forward. That Peter uses Dan's arch enemy in this story is very important. Why you'll have to read the issue to get the full scope of why I think that. Still we see The Mekon in all his glory and get a chance to see what it is that makes Dan Dare who he is at his core through their interaction.
Peter is also taking this to the next level so to speak but keeping the idea, world and way things as seen as being modern instead of the ideas of the future when it was created in the 1950's. Double edged sword, possibly but in all reality the likelihood of something that was though of then being used today would make it seem cheesy instead of an impactful realistic story.
Speaking of realistic Alberto does some amazing work on the interiors here. I love the way he thinks of the buildings and how they are connected while keeping some things very now just moved forward in time so that the two ideas merge. This Isn't the Jetson's and it certainly isn't Lost In Space instead what he brings to the page feels more natural like the right progression. His use of page layouts through their angles and perspective showcase a strong eye for storytelling. While personally I want backgrounds in every panel when Alberto does use them, which is often, they are so magnificent and show off the larger picture. The attention to detail is wonderful to see and there isn't anything here that doesn't work.
First issues of a series can go a couple ways, one of which is to use to set-up the series and show the reader what's to come, another is to start off in action or the middle of it all and then backtrack to show us the origins. This one does a superb job of bringing action and the set-up phase for at least this story arc. The characterisation here is superb and Peter shows off his skills in ways that could be too subtle for some yet it "comes out in the wash" towards the end. It's extremely well crafted and the story and character development move in concert with each other nicely.
Science Fiction needs a new hero and an updated, not really but go with it, franchise like Dan Dare is the perfect candidate for that!