It is good to be back ladies and gentlemen! Granted, there’s still a long way to go and we need to be careful in the next couple of months, but for now let’s enjoy that fact that we have new comic books out to read and enjoy!
Let’s celebrate with some cosmic horror and a helpless crew of space explorers who are probably going to die in gruesome and disturbing ways.
Written by Cullen BunnCover by: Andy McDonald and Nick Filardi
Illustrated by Andy McDonald
Colored by Nick Filardi
Lettered by Crank!
Salvage vessel Cortes tracks the Lonely Orphan, a planet with no star system to call its own. Somewhere on this hostile rock is a payload fit for a king. To attain it, though, the crew of the Cortes must brave razor rock, poisonous vapors, treacherous footing, and… the most mind-numbing horrors imaginable. Something nightmarish is at work on Lonely Orphan. Something cruel. Something hungry.
“Rogue Planet” #1 sets the scene on a barren and desolate planet in the middle of space. It’s so far out of the way that it doesn’t even orbit around a star. However, just because the planet is so far out of the way doesn’t mean there’s anything happening on it, and there just so happens to be a crew of salvagers passing by who have picked up the signal of a crashed ship and have landed on this planet in order to collect the payday of a lifetime. But what’s really happening on the surface of this strange and desolate world? How could a ship possibly crash on such an out of the way planet? And isn’t it strange how the whole place feels…alive?
The summary above shows a completely original story that in no way resembles any other sci fi horror classic where a crew of working class space cowboys find themselves on a desolate planet with an ancient and mysterious creature that picks them off one by one, and if you do see any similarities than maybe you’re going crazy.
All joking aside, “Rogue Planet” #1 is a solidly written book created by veteran comic book writer Cullen Bunn. If you have read any of Bunn’s books such as Harrow County or The Sixth Gun you know that Bunn is one of the leading voices in comic book horror and “Rogue Planet” #1 shows the writer branching out from his familiar comfort zone of Southern Gothic horror to more Lovecraftian stories. It’s a solid first book that doesn’t take too many chances with the tropes and beats of the genre, but does just enough to engage the reader and keep things interesting.
If you’re looking for new and exciting characters than “Rogue Planet” #1 isn’t really the right book. The crew of the almost certainly doomed ship is made up of the traditional collection of soldiers, technicians, and blue collar working types who have gone into space seeking work and profit. Bunn does do a good job with being very efficient with introducing his characters, the world, and setting the scene for their gruesome deaths and/or descent into madness.
However, while detailed characterization may have been sacrificed for efficiency, Bunn makes up for it by crafting a terrifying and monstrous world that is a character in its own right. The book does do something kind of new with the cosmic horror genre by establishing it as a threat on the very first page, with a strange tribe of aliens sacrificing one of their own to appease the mysterious god that either lives on, or has become, the planet. It’s a world that is both familiar to anyone who enjoys the work of Lovecraft and the book knows how to end and leave the reader wanting more.
While the writing is good enough for a decent story, the real star of the show is the artwork of “Rogue Planet” #1. Like the writing, McDonald doesn’t really seem to care about the characters and their ship. The people onboard are drawn with a simple and angular style that seems to be popular in a lot of non superhero books nowadays and aside from some interesting circuitry embedded in their faces, the technology and devices on board the ship feel like they’re present to just get the people to where the action is.
Continued belowBut the real treat of “Rogue Planet” #1 is the lavish attention that the artwork pays to the planet and the monster. While many of the characters lament about how ugly the place looks, the whole place feels like a living, breathing world that is capable of surviving the worst conditions imaginable. There are these strange crystals on the ground that feel like an integral part of the planet’s ecosystem and book even manages to make dull grey rocks look interesting. Then there’s the monster, and it’s clear that this is probably where McDonald spent most of his time. The monster is a writhing mass of tentacles, eyes, and teeth that really does come off as a massive, cosmic creature that doesn’t care about your wellbeing in the slightest.
On top of the great artwork there are some phenomenal colors by Nick Filardi on “Rogue Planet” #1. While McDonald’s pencils and inks give the world its incredible detail, Filardi’s colors do an amazing job of transforming a desolate and vicious world into something almost beautiful. The harsh metallic and earthy colors of the ship and planet are contrasted beautifully by splotches of a green borealis effect in the planet’s atmosphere and the harsh white light coming from the crystals on the ground. But once again, the star of the show is the monster itself, with its many mouths and eyes glowing with an unnatural pink and purple hue. It feels like there’s something beyond it, something that we mere humans are incapable of seeing…and probably shouldn’t look.
“Rogue Planet” #1 is a classic Lovecraftian horror story set in space and created by a solid creative team. While the writing won’t do much to subvert your expectations, the artwork and colors will draw you into a strange and terrifying world where sanity isn’t necessarily a given.
Final Verdict: 7.8 – A very traditional and borderline cliche horror opening that will draw you in with gorgeous art and colors.
