
Dark Horse Comics 2015
Written by Steven Grant
Illustrated by Paul Gulacy
Coloured by Jesus Aburto
Lettered by Nate Piekos
Last issue Restin found himself in a mess not of his making but one he was suitably made for considering his research and family history. Once able to get over the initial shock and inevitably meeting up with his ancestor who really did invent the time machine, see HG Wells the Traveller. That’s glossing over so you get a feel of what’s happened because there’s so much more that he experienced and it’s well worth reading. This issue picks up with him being his great grandfather’s assistant in Victorian England.
I really am enjoying is the dialogue and discussion that happens not only between relatives but between Wells and Adam. The suspicions of his intentions and that Wells hasn’t never written a book yet and just all the weirdness in Restin’s arrival it all was just brilliantly written. Not only does all this paint a great picture but it also sets up what actions the characters are going to take and their reasons why. So it serves multiple purposes and helps move everything along wonderfully.
What I was somewhat surprised by is that Restin between visits with his ancestor as his apprentice he goes home, to his time. He doesn’t dress as one would in Victorian times as I would presume he would considering he’s time traveling and all that but it does add to the whole thing about him being more than he lets on to them. In retrospect it’s a smart decision and one that demonstrates his lack of seasoning in what he’s doing and that is fantastic characterization through something seemingly so minor.
What i’m really enjoying about all this though is mixing fictional writing with a person’s reality. Taking something that we all know is fiction and making it historical in such a great way shouldn’t be overlooked. The blend of it all is done so well with using history, fiction and science fiction really creates one of the more entertaining reads and feels like a show that SyFy does incredibly well, see Sanctuary.
When Restin goes off in search of his ancestor, Adam, in time he’s really looking for answers to how not only all this began but why he’s become embroiled in it as well. Only his own sense of self and what’s right and wrong seem to contradict what he should be doing in order to survive the Morlocks and become this hero Rook that’s supposedly destined to be. Steven really does manage to showcase just how sensibilities of different eras serve in creating who we are and what we believe in here. He manages to grab our attention and keep us involved in the story through not only the characterization but subject matter and how the two can be related.
Paul adds his own unique vision to all this as well. He and Jesus really bring the Morlocks and the era’s involved to life beautifully and full of those moments you both desire and fear. The use of page layouts, panels and attention to detail really manage to draw in the reader and keep them kind of spellbound by the idea behind of all this being real.
Dark Horse has another series that could be among their most unique as the years go by and different stories come to life.