Comic Book Review: Eclipse #1
Judging from the cover of Eclipse #1, the comic looks to be a sort of space murder mystery. The main character, is standing there in what appears to be a space suit looking down at a gruesome arm, that presumably belongs to a dead person.
Of course, things are rarely what they appear to be. It isn’t a space suit that he is wearing, instead it is a suit meant to protect him from solar radiation. The story very much takes place on planet earth. Only in this particular tale the sun burns so bright that it can kill people instantly when exposed to its light.
If you are a believer in climate change and global warming, the story seems strangely plausible for the not too distant future. However, the man vs. nature scenario isn’t the only thing happening in this comic. This is in fact a murder mystery. There is someone who is killing people and their weapon of choice is that bright burning star in the sky that the earth rotates around.
There is a lot of world building that happens in [easyazon_link identifier=”B01HOVQEIO” locale=”US” tag=”bounintocomi-20″]Eclipse #1[/easyazon_link]. Mainly the readers are made familiar with the concept that the sun is the enemy (taking the idea of a sunburn to the next level.) However, in doing that the earth’s population lives underground or behind solar protective windows.
Life now operates in reverse to our own. With most of the world’s population now being awake at nighttime, and the daytime being used as the period for rest. It will be interesting to see in future issues if this strange reversal of circadian rhythms has an effect on the psyches of the comic’s characters.
[easyazon_image align=”center” height=”500″ identifier=”B01HOVQEIO” locale=”US” src=”http://boundingintocomics.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/61QckdUgUL.jpg” tag=”bounintocomi-20″ width=”329″]
Writer Zack Kaplan does an excellent job. He spends a lot of time explaining and detailing this new life threatening scenario. One example of this is the now almost exaggerated importance that taking vitamin D supplements has in this fictional world. He also manages to set the stage for what looks to be an interesting mystery.
Main character David Baxter feels like a Bruce Willis character, most notably Korben Dallas from the The Fifth Element. He is a no non-sense man, with what appears to be a heroic past. He also isn’t living up to his potential.
His involvement with solving a murder seems to come with hesitancy and a number of stipulations. For me this short-for-words character is very interesting. He embodies a certain amount of quiet machismo I wish I had myself.
Artist Giovanni P. Timpano does an excellent job of illustrating Eclipse #1. In the opening pages, he adds to Kaplan’s excellent world building with a stunning visual of an overcrowded city scene filled with people rushing to get underground before the sun comes up. With so many people, Timpano doesn’t appear to skimp on the details. Each character is cleanly rendered and detailed. This was very pleasing to see, since I’ve seen artists on other titles draw crowded street scenes with the people appearing as amorphous blobs.
When the sun comes up the imagery is in stark contrast to those opening panels. The world is desolate and lonely. Timpano manages to draw a scenario that seems directly inspired by the movie “28 Days Later” or “The Walking Dead.” There are no zombies in this comic, but Giovanni draws an empty city just primed to turn on our main character.
The Verdict
[easyazon_link identifier=”B01HOVQEIO” locale=”US” tag=”bounintocomi-20″]Eclipse #1[/easyazon_link] is a strong first issue that introduces the reader to a unique scenario where the life giving sun actually brings death. Main character David Baxter is an interesting character who is more than likely walking into a situation he hasn’t prepared for. However, Baxter is probably more than capable of handling himself. Artist Giovanni Timpano, manages to effortlessly flip flop between crowded and desolate scenes, which is extremely appealing to the eye.
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