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What’s up, Comic Fans? It’s me, Rich, your quintessential anthology comic stud muffin. This is a special occasion because this comic book is the second book released by the resurrected EC Comics!
Entertaining Comics was relaunched by Oni Press this year with the release of Epitaphs from the Abyss #1, which is a horror anthology (don’t worry I’ll be reviewing issue #2 for sure). They have followed it with this book, which is a Science Fiction anthology book.
Cruel Universe #1 is made up of four stories. The book features writing by Matt Kindt, Corinna Bechko, Chris Condon, and Ben H. Winters. The art is done by Kano, Caitlin Yarsky, Jonathan Case, and Artyom Topilin. It also features colors by Michael Atiyeh & Brittany Peer, and the lettering is done by Richard Starkings & Comicraft’s Tyler Smith.
Now that the business is out of the way let’s enter this crazy universe!
***Minor Spoilers Possible***
In This Cruel Universe Be Careful What You Wish For
The first story of the four is titled The Champion and is written by Matt Kindt, with art by Kano. In this story we are introduced to a galactic gladiator who has been forced into a Universal Tournament of Champions. At first, he finds it appalling, but then finds himself being attracted to the blood lust. In his final battle neither he nor you the reader are ready for the end.
This story is a very easy story to follow, and although it has a simplistic premise, its ending you don’t see coming. The artwork reminds me of comics from the 1980’s and the diverse character designs are great.
The second story is Solo Shift, written by Corinna Bechko, art by Caitlin Yarsky, and colors by Michael Atiyeh. This is the tale of an astronaut named Jared, who is on a solo mission to a black hole. Not only is he lonely, but his girlfriend broke up with him on a video message. Just when he thinks things couldn’t be bleaker, he finds another ship. Upon entering the ship, he finds that even though the young woman aboard has been murdered, she is also alone. After he discovers her notes on time travel, he decides to use them to save her. But from who or what?
This story may have been my favorite in the book. It shows the effects of being alone while yearning for companionship. Even though the ending is predictable, I still found myself enjoying it. The artwork is wonderful, and the color pallet of mostly oranges and reds really stands out.
The Twists Keep on Coming
Story number three is Drink Up, written by Chris Condon with art by Jonathan Case. This is the story of Eccentric Billionaire Martin Edenspoil, who is in the search of eternal life. His team finds the mythical Fountain of Youth. The only drawback is it’s going to be dangerous to get to it. However, Martin ignores the warnings to achieve immortality. But does he just seal his fate?
This tale reminds me of The Twilight Zone episode Time Enough at Last. Just when you think you have what you want, the rules change. In the case of this story, it couldn’t happen to a nicer person.
The final story is Priceless, written by Ben H. Winters, art by Artyom Topilin, and colors by Brittany Peer. A man named Jocko works as an Experiencer for an old, paralyzed man. This means he has experiences that his employer wants to have, they then extract the memory from Jocko and put them in the man’s head. Unfortunately for Jocko the man wants him to do something heinous. Will Jocko obey or will he be a hero? Either way, will it matter?
This is the darkest tale in this issue. The concept is super cool, and it has the best twist of the entire book. The artwork is great, and the colors are dark and foreboding.
Hello Darkness Review
Final Thoughts
This book from story one through story four holds the reader’s interest. The concept of stories that all end with a “wicked” twist is also super cool. Each story has art that is unique to that story, helping to separate each story. Overall, I really enjoyed this book, and will be making sure issue #2 is on my pull list.
Final Grade: 8.5/10
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