“Dark Blood” #1 is a remarkably well illustrated story. It would have been nice to learn something more about the protagonist. (Warning: may contain minor spoilers.)
Cover by Valentine De LandroWritten by LaToya Morgan
Illustrated by Walt Barna
Colored by A.H.G.
Lettered by AndWorld DesignAlabama, 1955. Avery Aldridge is an ordinary young Black man. A decorated World War II veteran, Avery provides for his wife and daughter. But wounds of the past have a way of coming back, and Avery Aldridge will soon discover he is anything but ordinary…. After a run-in awakens strange new abilities, Avery’s about to become more powerful than he could have ever dared to dream . . . in a country and society that never wanted him to have any power. A bold, evocative genre-bending saga by screenwriter LaToya Morgan (AMC’s The Walking Dead, Into The Badlands) and rising star artist Walt Barna (The Osiris Path) perfect for fans of Department of Truth and Bitter Root!
In the tension-filled first scene of “Dark Blood” #1, protagonist Avery Aldridge walks down a dark, empty street. We hear his innermost most thoughts. “Most things are never what they seem,” he says. “No matter how much you dress things up, scratch deep enough and you’ll find something ugly.”
As White America reluctantly reckons with its racist past – and present – it doesn’t take very much scratching to uncover ugly truths.
Shortly after he was appointed Commander in Chief of the Continental Army, for example, George Washington signed a proclamation forbidding the recruitment of Black soldiers. (Turns out plantation owners weren’t exactly thrilled about the idea of arming the people they brutalized.) Undermanned and overburdened, Washington retracted his edict one year later and begrudgingly allowed Blacks to serve – albeit within strictly segregated units.
That segregation continued for the next 170 years.
Finally, on July 26, 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed an executive order abolishing discrimination in the U.S. military based on “race, color, religion or national origin.” It was a bold, monumental step, but it was also in Truman’s self interest. He needed the support of Black voters if he hoped to win the 1948 presidential election.
Either way, Truman’s unilateral move infuriated white Dixiecrats, who openly waged a campaign of intimidation and violence against Black veterans.
Avery ‘Double A’ Aldridge is one such veteran. As the book begins, Double A finds himself being stalked and harassed by an angry white man with menacing pale blue eyes. Interweaving a brief flashback scene, writer LaToya Morgan delivers an unexpected resolution to the ensuing confrontation, and illustrator Walt Barna inks it all beautifully.
Barna’s compact panels and often close-up framing keep the action moving as the narrative builds to its climax. He also mixes eye-level perspectives with lower, more ominous angels to further build the intensity. His motion and focus lines generate a lot of excitement and energy, while simultaneously giving the book an appropriately pulpy vibe. Even better, Barna manages to avoid the dreaded ‘cartoony’ look. In fact, Barna’s pitch-perfect facial expressions tell the story beautifully all on their own. Morgan’s dialogue feels largely unnecessary as we see Double A reluctantly turn around and battle his unrelenting adversary.
A.H.G.’s simple, but not simplistic color palette makes great use of complementary colors. Pale orange and reddish brown are juxtaposed against a deep, greenish turquoise that further underscores the book’s tension. The contrast also accentuates Double A’s vulnerability as he walks alone at night. Similarly, AndWorld Design’s letters are relatively sparse, but highly effective. It’s a less-is-more approach that grabs your attention only when necessary.
The one weak link may be Morgan’s boilerplate script. The action is captivating and wonderfully paced, but a little too reliant on tropes. Morgan quickly throws us right into the thick of the story and doesn’t give us a breather until the final scene. Along the way, we get a glimpse of A.A.’s backstory, but almost nothing about his persona. There’s an intense satisfaction in the way that he stands up to the racist asshole, but not much else that makes the reader feel invested. As the first issue comes to a close, Double A muses internally, “Thoughts of you are my first and last.” Certainly, we’ll soon find out who A.A. is addressing, but it would’ve been great to get a stronger hint.
The book builds to a great climax – and Morgan plants some intriguing seeds – but the narrative may have been a stronger if the final flashback had come earlier. As it’s structured now, the final scene almost feels like a coda. Without question, I want to know what happens next, but it feels like we barreled right past what could’ve been a powerful cliffhanger. There may be a compelling reason for the way the book is structured, but for the moment, at least, the tension seems to be draining away.
Final Verdict: 7.9 “Dark Blood” #1 unfolds pretty quickly. With a little more time and space spent getting to know the protagonist, the debut issue would be more powerful.
