By Svetlana Fedotov
I usually like to start my reviews with some vague tidbit or smart ass comment that loosely connects my review to the review subject, but screw that. Dustin Nguyen and Jeff Lemire wrote a comic! About SPACE! AND ROBOTS! That’s good enough of an introduction. Both Nguyen and Lemire are two of the growing number of artists and writers from Marvel and DC who got caught in the bright lights of Image Comics and its promise to give the weary, schedule strict creators an unrestricted amount of freedom and personal space. Descender is the end result of the couples dubious affair with Image, a sweeping epic of space and technology and at its center, a man who has lost everything and an android who’s looking for anyone.
The comic opens up on a galaxy far, far way where the nine core planets of the United Galactic Council have had a steady, if not a bit shaky, alliance of peace for several centuries. Of course, that peace shatters like a wine glass in a villain’s hand as robots, dubbed “The Harvesters,” appear overnight at every major planet and just trash everything. While most of the biological life is killed, The Harvesters take care not to harm android life, sparking a robot genocide perpetuated by the last living creatures. At the center of this war is Dr. Quon, a once respected robotics scientist forced to squabble in misery after his expertise failed to save everyone, and Tim 21, a young android unaware of the horrors of the past ten years. Though they have yet to meet, little do they know how important they are to each other.
I’m not exactly sure what a space opera is but, if it’s what I think it is, Descender would definitely be up for a Tony. For fans of emotionally driven sci-fi with a touch of philosophy and robot dogs, Descender plays it up in spades. From the grandiosity of the nine planets and the overwhelming presence of “The Harvesters” to the little life speck of Tim 21 left alone on an abandoned outpost, there is no place un-touched by the sharp point of Jeff Lemire’s pen. Despite grappling with such a heady subjects as politics, genocide, and the push of technology, the comic stays surprisingly intimate; spending a large amount of time with Tim 21 as he searches for answers on his lonely rock of a planet. By placing the reader in the shoes of an equally confused protagonist, we get the Luke Skywalker/Empire Strikes Back experience all over again. We are invited to explore the universe with such wide-eyed wonder, it’s a wonder our eyeballs don’t pop out of our heads.
Not to be outdone, Dustin Nguyen’s art compliments Lemire’s words while still being able to exist beautifully on its own. Nguyen’s signature art style, a pop art/water color mix could not have been a better choice for this epic. He has a distinct eye for space usage and placement while adding just the right colors to create a world that is as inclusive as it is unique. The stars are starry, the planets are planetary, and the feels? Babe, the feels are real. Nguyen makes damn sure of that. Debuting with a whopping 40 pages, Descender #1 hits shelves March 4!