The Stranded #1 Virgin Comics |
The Stranded is the first collaboration between Virgin Comics and the Sci Fi Channel, written by Mike Carey with art by Virgin’s Siddharth Kotian. It centers around five ordinary people who aren’t really that ordinary at all. They are actually beings from other planets with amazing abilities who’ve been placed on earth and stripped of their memories, thus they lead regular lives of regular people. But now an alien force has come to find and eliminate each one of them, so it’s up to their protector, Tamree, to find them first, show them who they really are, and protect them from this alien force.
This first issue was a nice introduction to the world of The Stranded. We open with a young guy in a psychiatrist’s office talking about how he dreams of himself as some sort of super-hero that feels so real. Soon we discover he wasn’t far off the mark, but it’s too late for him.
This serves as a great introduction that quickly enforces what this book is all about. While everything might not be clear after these first four pages, the basic premise is clearly defined at this point. We then meet Tamree and the rest of the story begins to unfold with some cool surprises and a nice cliffhanger to end the first issue of the series.
Carey’s writing is top notch as he constructs this story masterfully giving each and every character a unique voice, as well as dictating the flow of the plot in a fluid fashion. The emotion of each character and scene comes through without fail at every turn, and everything we need to see is in this issue without it feeling forced, rushed or compressed.
The art of Kotian is equally exquisite as he displays an uncanny knack for layouts, and beautifully conveys emotions and moods throughout the issue. There is no wasted space, and at every turn of the page we get more build up and more urgency and suspense as dictated by the stunning artwork staring back at us.
Virgin Comics in its short life so far has always shot for high quality and, in my estimation, has rarely failed. This is another example of their success, and there’s no doubt in my mind that they will continue to grow and flourish with their unique and groundbreaking stories and collaborations.
If you’re into Sci-Fi, Suspense, Action, Drama, or just good comics you will enjoy this book. Give it a try, you won’t be disappointed.
Page last updated on March 22, 2008