Review: Astral Genesis
Hundreds of thousands of kilometres above Earth a large portal opens up in the fabric of space. Dozens of menacing alien warships pour out of it, piloted by monstrous demonic creatures. The Moon is shattered, debris raining down upon the Earth to extinguish all life...
Not a good end to the day.... How well did it start? Also not good, at least for disgraced ex-astronaut Jonathan DeVane. It is the tenth anniversary of the disastrous Venture mission: DeVane was the commander of the mission, a space shuttle with a nuclear missile on board to deflect a comet that was heading for Earth. Damage from the comet's debris field handicapped the shuttle. DeVane attempted to launch the missile manually....
He failed. Debris fell on Asia, killing over three hundred people. Roundly blamed for the disaster, but cleared of all criminal charges, he resigned and went off grid to disappear from public view.
Waking up with a liquid breakfast, he heads to work, joining a group of unregistered migrant labourers. He gets into a fight and flees the scene, speeding and being stopped by the police. Can things get any worse? A ray of light pierces the darkness when an old friend from NASA shows up to bail him out. He also has a job offer, which, pretty low on options, DeVane accepts.
The US military has, after much negotiation, been given permission from Russia and China to retrieve debris from the failed Venture mission. This, plus other sensitive pieces of cargo, are to be transported by road from an army research lab to an airforce base.
DeVane's job is to transport one of the more sensitive items: a young Russian hacker. As the convoy sets off, the boy genius finds a way to hack his electronic cuffs and tries to make a break for freedom... but at that moment, the convoy comes under attack from the air. Gunmen alight and search the area. A secure truck containing a mysterious pod opens. DeVane sets light to an oil spillage, blowing it up...
And from the wreckage emerges a tall, athletic woman with purple hair, a metallic left arm and a VERY pissed expression on her beautiful face...
Astral Genesis by writer Ivan M. Cohen and artist Ariel Medel (produced by Jay Magnum) is a tick-all-the-boxes sci-fi action romp with lots of explosions, fisticuffs, spaceships and aliens, secret government organisations, high stakes drama, even a little romance... DeVane reconnects with his ex-fiance and former Venture colleague for help when he, the hacker and the mysterious female ('Lila') start running. Will the flame be rekindled? Plus the young hacker has the teenboy hots for the exotic Amazonian...
The story rattles along swiftly and covers a lot of ground. The purple-haired superwoman is not the only exotic specimen to be retrieved from the wreckage of the Venture... It soon becomes clear that there never was a comet threatening Earth, but something much more sinister.
The characters are nicely conceived: DeVane is a walking cliché tough guy channeling Die Hard Bruce Willis, the exchanges between him and the sarcastic Russian hacker boy are a delight. Lila is strong and determined but also sensitive and vulnerable. The art is sharp and slick with some entertaining alien designs. The story ends on cliff-hanger, baiting you to find out what happens next...
Not a good end to the day.... How well did it start? Also not good, at least for disgraced ex-astronaut Jonathan DeVane. It is the tenth anniversary of the disastrous Venture mission: DeVane was the commander of the mission, a space shuttle with a nuclear missile on board to deflect a comet that was heading for Earth. Damage from the comet's debris field handicapped the shuttle. DeVane attempted to launch the missile manually....
He failed. Debris fell on Asia, killing over three hundred people. Roundly blamed for the disaster, but cleared of all criminal charges, he resigned and went off grid to disappear from public view.
Waking up with a liquid breakfast, he heads to work, joining a group of unregistered migrant labourers. He gets into a fight and flees the scene, speeding and being stopped by the police. Can things get any worse? A ray of light pierces the darkness when an old friend from NASA shows up to bail him out. He also has a job offer, which, pretty low on options, DeVane accepts.
The US military has, after much negotiation, been given permission from Russia and China to retrieve debris from the failed Venture mission. This, plus other sensitive pieces of cargo, are to be transported by road from an army research lab to an airforce base.
DeVane's job is to transport one of the more sensitive items: a young Russian hacker. As the convoy sets off, the boy genius finds a way to hack his electronic cuffs and tries to make a break for freedom... but at that moment, the convoy comes under attack from the air. Gunmen alight and search the area. A secure truck containing a mysterious pod opens. DeVane sets light to an oil spillage, blowing it up...
And from the wreckage emerges a tall, athletic woman with purple hair, a metallic left arm and a VERY pissed expression on her beautiful face...
Astral Genesis by writer Ivan M. Cohen and artist Ariel Medel (produced by Jay Magnum) is a tick-all-the-boxes sci-fi action romp with lots of explosions, fisticuffs, spaceships and aliens, secret government organisations, high stakes drama, even a little romance... DeVane reconnects with his ex-fiance and former Venture colleague for help when he, the hacker and the mysterious female ('Lila') start running. Will the flame be rekindled? Plus the young hacker has the teenboy hots for the exotic Amazonian...
The story rattles along swiftly and covers a lot of ground. The purple-haired superwoman is not the only exotic specimen to be retrieved from the wreckage of the Venture... It soon becomes clear that there never was a comet threatening Earth, but something much more sinister.
The characters are nicely conceived: DeVane is a walking cliché tough guy channeling Die Hard Bruce Willis, the exchanges between him and the sarcastic Russian hacker boy are a delight. Lila is strong and determined but also sensitive and vulnerable. The art is sharp and slick with some entertaining alien designs. The story ends on cliff-hanger, baiting you to find out what happens next...
SEE ALSO:
Part Two: Astral Evolution
Part Three: Astral Alliance
Part Four: Astral Vengeance
Zak Webber
Twitter - @sfcomicartist / Instagram - @sfcomicartist
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