Frank Barbiere, Garry Brown, Lauren Affe and Dave Sharpe take us on a brand new time travel story. Read on for our review of “The Revisionist” #1, but be warned, there will be minor spoilers within.
Written by Frank Barbiere
Illustrated Garry Brown and Lauren Affe
New series! How far would you go to save reality? Martin Monroe is The Revisionist-a time-traveling assassin tasked with repairing our fractured timeline. Forced to place his trust in his estranged father, Martin will have to overcome his troubled past to save the future-but can he live with his decisions?Join the all-star creative team of writer FRANK J. BARBIERE (Five Ghosts, Avengers World), artist GARRY BROWN (Black Road, The Massive), and colorist LAUREN AFFE (The Paybacks, Turok: Dinosaur Hunter) for the first chapter of an all-new action/sci-fi adventure about fathers, sons, and time travel!
AfterShock Comics has come out swinging in the comic book industry. They are a new publisher but have not wasted any time putting out creator owned books featuring high profile creators like Brian Azzarello, Marguerite Bennett and Garth Ennis. They show no signs of slowing down and this week they give us another science fiction series with “The Revisionist”. While this series does tread on some familiar ground in regards to time travel but that doesn’t stop this from being a trippy and exciting debut.
“The Revisionist” #1 introduces us to Martin Monroe, a prisoner who seems to be much more kind hearted than his counterparts. Martin has been helping out an officer, Killian, on the inside by reporting to her about some of the illegal activities that have been going on. Martin is extremely close to being released from prison but as his luck would have it, the other inmates have found out what he was up to and are looking to keep him from ever leaving jail. Thankfully (or not?) for Martin, a mysterious package left in his cell might have all the answers he needs if he can escape prison.
What really works about “The Revisionist” #1 is the time Barbiere takes to establish his lead character. This is an ongoing so Barbiere is aware that he doesn’t need to give everything up right in the beginning. We’re given a full origin story right here in this issue with an opening that establishes enough of where the lead is now. The majority of this issue is a flashback to the prison Martin is serving time in but I do think it does a lot as far as establishing who Martin is. We need to be invested in him and Barbiere does that with the way he approaches this first issue. I really like how Barbiere embraces Martin’s cluelessness and skepticism about what’s happening around him. Some of “Five Ghosts” peeks through in this story through the pacing. Barbiere moves things along really nicely and teases us with a lot of what’s to come.
The later half of the book features an exhilarating prison escape that features Barbiere and Brown working in perfect tandem. Barbiere’s script moves things along quickly but the way he uses the voiceovers of Martin’s “helper” is effective. It allows for Martin to do what he needs but the way Barbiere writes it avoids unnecessary exposition. It’s almost like watching a movie thanks to what Brown does on art. His panel layouts here are on point and the stacking of them and unconventional arrangement allows for a brisk pace. Brown’s level of movement in his line work is so important here and he does this same kind of heavy lifting in the early part of the issue as well. This, however, is the second best visual sequence of “The Revisionist” #1.
The best sequence in the book is this trippy moment where Martin embraces what’s about to happen to him. Using a splash page technique, Brown and Affe create a beautiful spread full of wonderment, misery and captures the wackiness of science fiction. Brown’s arrangement of these pages is perfect and Affe’s use of dark blues and oranges blends together for a dizzying but gorgeous effect.
Brown and Affe work together really well because Affe brings something something lighter to Brown’s art. Brown is one of my personal favorites and much of what he’s done sits on the darker side. Affe is able to bring some vibrancy to his pencils and inks and it adds something so much more to his already excellent work. I love how Brown is still able to create something gritty without becoming too dark and moody. It’s reigned in by Affe’s lush palette that can still bring the right mood.
What does feel a bit lacking is exploration of what exactly a Revisionist does. We get a lot of really valuable stuff involving Martin and how he gets wrapped up in this big situation but we don’t get a lot of backstory about what he’s being led into. There are a lot of questions still unanswered but “The Revisionist” #1 makes you want to come back to get those answers.
Final Verdict: 7.9 – A very enjoyable debut that has a lot to offer science fiction fans.
