Invisible Kingdom #1 Review

Writer: G. Willow Wilson

Artist: Christian Ward

Rating: 7 of 8

Invisible Kingdom #1

Sometimes, there's an interesting contradiction between religious people and the religion they believe in. That's apparent here, as two nones of the Dunian monastery are openly hostile and prejudiced towards new initiate Vess. Though it's here we learn that Vess' race actually has four genders, making them stand out from other races. I wonder do some characters' prejudices stem from this?

Vess' journey isn't the only one we follow here, as we also follow freighter pilot Grix and her crew. It's interesting how despite very different vocations, the two women are presented with very similar dilemmas. How the two choose to act regarding them is most likely revealed next issue, but this connection is intriguing nevertheless.

Ward's art works very well in places, like when Vess first sees the inside of the monastery. The scale is amazing, while Ward really impressed me with how he drew light coming in. I really liked how dark the reds of the nones robes were when Vess first arrives at the monastery. At the end, the colours outside are beautiful.

Ultimately, I enjoyed Vess' story a lot more than Grix's. Reading the issue, I wasn't sure how they connected, though I can see it more now than I did. If you give the issue a go, you'll find two distinct stories; Grix's is more sci-fi in feel, with her and her crew trying their best to survive a failing flight. Vess' story is quieter, but for me, more compelling. If any of this sounds interesting to you, then feel free to enter the Invisible Kingdom.

Orphan Age #1 Review

Writer: Ted Anderson

Artist: Nuno Plati

Rating: 7 of 8

Orphan Age #1

When I was a lot younger, I wondered what it would be like if all  adults disappeared. There'd just be teenagers, children, that's it. Would society fall apart, or would we help each other? Would things be better with a fresh start, or would we struggle without their help or guidance? 

Orphan Age is centred around this idea, though I wish it explored more of the time immediately after the adults all die. I would've found it more interesting seeing the teens and kids doing their best to rebuild society and how it affected different people in different ways. Instead, the issue skips ahead 20 years and though it's still a quality issue, I feel it would've stood out more against other post-apocalyptic tales if it had focused more on the initial rebuilding of society and the different emotional impacts it would have.

That's my only real criticism, as the writing's solid and though the art's got a simple style, it works fine. We do get to see how the numerous deaths affected one of the Dallas Town residents and get a bit of a feel of how life is there. In a conversation between a young girl named Princess and her father, we get a sense of how this new world contrasts with the old.

The peace of this place doesn't last, with the arrival of the New Church necessitating a quick exit. The last few moments make me feel we're in for a road trip for the next few issues, as I don't think they'll arrive at their destination that soon. I'm not quite sure what the quotations at the end mean, but hopefully you do. Due to Daniel being on the cover, I got the impression he'd be our main character, but reading the issue, I feel it's more Princess. I hope if you try this, that you enjoy it and that this is just the start of a stirring sci-fi tale.

Section Zero #1 Review

Writer: Karl Kesel

Artist: Tom Grummett

Rating: 6 of 8

Section Zero #1

Clandestine organisations are a very familiar part of science fiction. You can look to Men in Black for a group of the same name, or Marvel for SHIELD. So it's not surprising when Kesel and Grummett bring us a comic featuring a group with an aim similar to the MIB - though perhaps with less memory wiping.

Section Zero aims to protect people from the threats and species they don't know exist, with members like stubble laden Sam Wildman, blonde Dr Tina and grey skinned alien Tesla. While on a mission, Sam and Tina encounter someone who's half bug, half human, later finding he's an Asian teen named Thom Talesi.

He's got a rather unique ability -  after getting a tattoo of a bug in San Francisco's Chinatown, anytime he rubs it, he turns into a human/bug hybrid for 24 hours. Before he turned back, I really enjoyed seeing such fun, over the top moments with this 24 hour bug. It kind of reminds me of monster films, with science gone wrong, like The Fly, but not as horrific.

I do wish there was more in Australia, where the story begins, as I found myself more intrigued by what was going on there. From the start to a little after Thom explains how his transformations began, the story flows well and is fairly enjoyable. But near the end of the issue, when the group's boss, AJ Keeler, is brought back into it, the story isn't as compelling and didn't really pull me in. There wasn't a lot of interesting things happening, apart from one near the end, which should have an interesting impact next issue.

To look at, Sam reminds me of Marvel's Wonder Man, while the art is similar to John Buscema's. Interestingly, the series was first published by Gorilla Comics in 2000, which was an imprint of Image Comics. Now, the series is being republished and continued at Image as a 6 issue mini-series. If it sounds interesting to you, give issue 1 a go and see what you think.