A comiXologist Recommends:
Mike Isenberg recommends Dark Engine #1
Written by Ryan Burton and illustrated by John Bivens, Dark Engine #1 is a fantastically weird, gory, and beautiful romp through a strange alien world.
The story features a female warrior named Sym, created by alchemists to travel back in time and defeat the evil that plagues them in the past like some sort of berzerk lady Terminator. But the source of Sym’s power, the alchemical Dark Engine implanted deep within her, is unpredictable, and the outcome of her mission is far from certain.
Issue #1 plunges us directly into the deep end of the strange world that Burton and Bivens have created. The book introduces the setting and a few characters, but this place is weird, and very little is explained directly to the reader. Instead we are left to piece together the what, when, and why from context and a few snippets of dialogue.
Between those few dialogue scenes are a number of gorgeously rendered action sequences, mostly concerning Sym cutting her way through dinosaurs and monsters, covering herself with blood and viscera along the way. Bivens executes these beautifully, with a rough-yet-purposeful brush style that evokes the work of artists like Paul Pope and Nathan Fox.
The near-impenetrable weirdness of Dark Engine’s setting gives it a plapable sense of alienation and danger. That so little is explained directly to us only serves to make the world feel more real and alive. Fans of Brandon Graham’s (royalboiler) excellent Prophet revival will feel right at home here. Dark Engine #1 leaves us with a lot of questions, but it takes us on a wonderfully trippy ride along the way. Definitely worth checking out!
For fans of: sci-fi, supernatural, action
Mike Isenberg is an Associate Production Coordinator at comiXology, and the co-writer of FIRST LAW OF MAD SCIENCE. He lives in Harlem with his cats, TESLA AND EDISON
