Under #1 –
Statix Press
Written by Christophe Bec
Art by Stefano Raffaele
Colors by Christian Favrelle
Translated by Mark McKenzie-Ray
Usually when you think of the sewers and comic books, you’re thinking of fun loving turtles or a croc that gives the Caped Crusader fits. Imagine a sewer of almost infinite size, and who knows what lurking in the dark corners. That brings us to one of the first offerings from Statix Press, as we go Under to explore the Scourge of the Sewer.
The story follows the vast sewers of Megalopolis, and the officers sworn to keep things safe and operational. One of those officers is a Lt. Wilson Jericho, who we know from reading the first few pages of the book, wasn’t always a sewer cop. Being considered the best of the reject band of officers, he is tasked with escorting a scientist by the name of Sandra Yeatman through the sewers to research sightings of massive creatures who lurk in the deepest and darkest corners. As you can see by the cover, there is plenty to encounter and we do get to see some pretty crazy action sequences. As you get more into the story, you find out there is much more to this story and protecting the sewer than you would think. I’ll save you a million bad puns, but here’s one, it runs deep. The oversized issue does have a few quick off-shoot stories that tie into everything, but the focus remains on Jericho and Yeatman. What we’re left with is a very bizarre and startling discovery, that should be the perfect kick off to the second issue.
There is plenty to like about this book, but there are a few head scratchers, as well. To start off, the art is very detailed and is really the star of the book. When you see these creatures, no detail is spared and they really come to life on the page. I also like that this book doesn’t dumb down the science, and actually makes you feel like you might actually be learning something funky. The problem is, it’s hard to really get invested in any of the characters. You do get some back story for Jericho, but beyond that there isn’t much to really grab ahold of. The “random person enters the sewer” thing is also a bit distracting after the beginning of the book. I feel like this book is on the cusp of being really good, but can’t quite nail the character development. If that can be cleaned up in the second and concluding issue, this may be a graphic novel you’d want to add to your collection.
RATING: PICK UP