Image Comics 2018
Created & Written by Jody Leheup
Created & Illustrated by Nathan Fox
Coloured by Dave Stewart
Lettered by Steve Wands
Nathan Bright had it all: an awesome girlfriend, a kick-arse dog, and a job as the number one weatherman on terraformed Mars. But when he's accused of carrying out the worst terrorist attack in human history—an event that wiped out nearly the entire population of Earth—Nathan becomes the most wanted man alive and a target of a manhunt that spans the galaxy. But is Nathan truly responsible for such a horrific crime? And why can't he remember?
Alright so I rather enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I might. Though let’s face it Jody did Shirtless Bear Fighter and I loved that. Still the way that this book comes at you is what really got to me as we are introduced to a myriad of different characters, get some idea of what happened though not entirely and then there’s Nathan. There is this great sense of hope that goes alongside a sense of loss and the two are balanced so incredibly well. I think the uplifting side of things far outweighs the sadness and that’s how it’s supposed to be.
I adore the way that this book is structured. There is this natural grace to the way the story flows through the pages and little nuggets of information are released. I think the opening is brilliant and Mrs. Morgan steals whatever panel she’s in and Amanda is slightly taken aback by what she says and that was extremely impressive. Young folks think they know more than they do and think they know more than we do and that makes them look like children in our eyes. We all need friends even if it’s only a handful of them to count on, lean on and make the bad days brighter.
Also that two-page spread yeah damn you all for that.
I am thoroughly impressed with the level of characterisation that we get here. Amanda’s is stunning and we see a few different sides to her and most importantly that lost little girl that is in there who is ready to grow up and question how the universe really works. While Nathan is another story altogether he’s more simple to understand, live in the moment it’s all we have and make people forget for a moment and give them a reason to smile. Something he does exceptionally well as a Weatherman on Mars.
I am almost in love with the interior artwork here. That two-page spread and Mrs. Morgan were delightful. When we see panels that utilise the city or the backgrounds like the top panel on page five it’s a wow factor. Too bad Nathan got out of bed with shorts on heh but that we see him get ready and taking care of Sadie, his dog, this imagery tells the reader so much about him that words just couldn’t do. The utilisation of the page layouts is spectacular and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels shows off a stellar eye for storytelling.
I am already in love with Nathan, he’s got that slacker stoner persona and uses his platform as the Weatherman to bring people happiness. He’s somewhat altruistic, a deep thinker and incredibly socially awkward yet he doesn’t give up and that we see how he can love and take of Sadie well yeah he’s pretty much that geeky loner catch of a guy. Since there are no coincidences in life the events that we see unfold in this opening chapter show us just enough to make us wonder and imply a few things of which I will not go into now.
With a great premise, incredibly strong writing and characterisation surrounded by equally talented interior artwork it’s really no wonder it’s already fast tracked for a second printing!
p.s. If I find out whose responsible for Sadie............