Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Manifest Destiny #1
Image Comics
Dingess, Roberts & Gieni
Lewis and Clark head into the wilderness 200 years ago and map out the new territory gained from the Louisiana Purchase. However, they also cleaned up monsters. I bet you didn't know that? This comic book explores that idea and is a fantastic read.
Basically Lewis and Clark set out on the journey and the reader gets to know the lead characters. The pair understands their mission and appear as strong characters with a certain purpose. They are written in a very appealing way to carry this book. But more time is spent letting the reader know the supporting cast.
The crew is a mixture of soldiers and convicts. All have their own motives for joining up and they've been slightly misled as to the purpose of the mission. The supporting crew seems to have various suspicions and it is clear that some are brighter than others. The book progresses one character's mini-plot that launches into a larger one by the book's end. This all helps round out a terrific introduction to a nice cache of characters.
The book has a nice pace to it. The comic opens with some pages on Lewis and Clark and their interaction as they figure out some of their next steps. The book quickly moves to the more sketchy crew members and that leads to a confrontation. Finally, the last few pages bring out what the crew is really dealing with. It's a tough task to introduce characters, provide a plot and end with action but this comic book doesn't fantastically.
The artwork is gorgeous. The book has that sharp detailed look to it that you find in some of the best work in the medium. The character work leading up to the action is enhanced by the artwork greatly. There is life in the artwork when dealing with the characters and then the art explodes when the action starts. I loved the look of this comic book and the last page made me "gulp" out loud. Great artwork.
I get it; westerns and historical comics aren't everyone's cup of tea. However, if you like character work and interesting personalities mixed up with the unexpected then I urge you to give this book a try. A plus is the beautiful artwork specifically the outstanding final page. Give this book a shot and read something a little different from the normal books that ship week to week.
4.5 out of 5 Geek Goggles
