TRANSHUMAN #1 (OF 4)

Review by: daccampo

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Size: pages
Price: 3.50

I’ve finally put a bit of a finger on where I don’t connect with Jonathan Hickman’s latest works, so I thought I’d capsulize that in the form of a review.

But first, the good:

Jonathan Hickman is making unique comics. They are incredibly well-designed. And absolute delight to look at. And he’s covering meaty topics. He’s touching on elements of sci-fi that comics books have been doing for years, but free from corporate interference, he’s able to examine these concepts in an entirely new light. This is very good for comics, and I’m glad he’s getting the attention he’s getting.

However, there’s something lacking for me in the first two issues of Pax Romana, and it took the first issue of Transhuman to really solidify that element.

In Transhuman #1, I really wanted a scene. I wanted to the characters to do something.

I get the documentary style. It’s good. It’s a valid form of storytelling, and Hickman uses the technique to excellent effect here. However, what we get in this issue is almost entirely expositional. All of the characters are telling us who they are and what they’ve done. Sure, we get little bits of subplots, like the divorced couple, but…well, we’re still told all about these elements, and we never get to experience them for ourselves. As a reader, this leaves me at a distance. I read stories to feel things, and I feel them most sharply when characters are taking actions that I can relate to in some way. I really wanted to see Dave and Janice in a room together. I wanted to feel the awkwardness or the anger or the resentment. But the entire issue is spent setting up the world and its status quo. And, listen: that’s a good thing. We need that too. I’m simply of a mind that if you really want to wow me with a first issue, you need to build that world, make it fascinating, and also make me feel what it’s like to be in the world. I didn’t get that in issue #1.

Now, that could very well be Hickman’s design. Maybe we just start with a documentary to bring us into this world. If so, then I expect to be absolutely blown away next issue when we actually drop into a scene and we get to see these characters in action.

This is, if I’m not mistaken, the first time we’ve seen Hickman as solely the writer (and designer) of the book. So we’ve got to make mention of the artwork of JM Ringuet. I thought Ringuet’s artwork complemented the story nicely. The characters are rough-hewn and expressive. A bit stiff in some cases, but that’s a very minor nag. Reminds me a bit of a cross between Kevin O’Neill and Brett Weldele. Ringuet is credited with the “art,” so I’m presuming that this includes the coloring. The colors are great in this book — it’s a nice, moody palette that greatly compliments the story. The art and design of the book are definite stand-outs.

And, hey, don’t get me wrong — the story looks to be fascinating. It still feels a bit academic to me at this point, but I’m very much looking forward to the next issue.

Story: 3 - Good
Art: 4 - Very Good

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