Imagine a world that has been infiltrated by aliens. They could be anyone, could be anywhere. They could be your best friend, your boss, your partner or even your husband or wife. The only thing that allows us to see them as they truly are is a bright light catching them just so. In order for them to survive, there must be a Midnight Sky.
This book, part Invasion of the Body Snatchers, part They Live!, covers familiar ground. The idea of aliens amongst use has always been a good ruse, covering the aforementioned movies and of course in shows like The Invaders and also being a staple of Mulder and Scully’s lives in the X-Files. Throw in ragtag survivors and writer James Pruett has managed to mine a wealth of different influences. With so many stories of this ilk going before, it is hard to deliver a totally original story. Pruett does well to centre the book on one family, as it gives the book a more emotional impact. For the most part, you get to see this dark and scary world through their eyes, from the first moment of realisation and subsequent decisions that bring about a very personal level of horror. It is a well thought out introduction to the family, covering a minor time hop to help set up some of the pieces. Being the first issue, there isn’t a lot time spent on secondary characters, though there are a couple that show the signs of being interesting.
The art is supplied by Scott Van Domelen, with a polished style throughout. This book needs to carry an emotional wallop, so faces and expressions become paramount. Van Domelen excels in this area. Also covered well is the overall normalcy of the characters postures and clothes. This is supposed to be a slice of “real world” and Van Domelen has certainly done his homework in ensuring that the art reflects that. I have to say, the dog is especially well crafted. There are a couple of action scenes where Van Demelen get the chance to utilise different panel layouts, which is great, though maybe alternative camera angles would have helped more. Colors are provided by Ilaria Fella who has to contend with various environments from past, present, day and the almost eternal night. In doing so, Fella gets to display a wide range of skills. Finally, there is no letterer mentioned, though whomever it is did a great job in setting the tone of the inner monologue that serves to drive the reader through the book.
Scout Comics have kind of flown under the radar for a while with an esoteric range of books, here they deliver a slices of, possibly, your favourite invasion type influences, that congregate to deliver a story that if not wholly original, does serve the overall tropes in play well.
Writing – 4.5 Stars
Art – 3.5 Stars
Colors – 4 Stars
[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
Written by; James Pruett
Art by; Scott Van Domelen
Colors by; Ilaria Fella
Published by; Scout Comics
Midnight Sky #1 will be in comic shops September 25th
Author Profile
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I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow
Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network
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