Pop #1

Pop #1 snaps and crackles but it comes just short of popping. 

Writing: Curt Pires
Art: Jason Copland
Publising: Dark Horse

Dark Horse has been pushing a lot of new books lately. Dark Ages #1 just came out, this week we have Sundowners #1 and this little gem of grungy futuristic art, Pop #1. Why is Dark Horse doing this? Is it to keep up with the overwhelming successful works on Image, Marvel and DC as of late? Is it to move towards a creator owned business model? Is it because they know something we don't know about their more popular books like BPRD? Who cares when the things coming out are as good as this anyways? Because, damn, Pop #1 is good, if a little shakey. 

The premise? A genetically altered and literally grown pop star/icon/hero/something escapes from her creators to be saved and sheltered by a burnt out middle aged guy who spends his time with records, comics, weed and, almost exclusvliey wears plaid it seems. A match made in heaven? Not exactly. But after he helps this grown girl, Elle, remove a tracking nanite from her body, it seems like these two will be together for good or bad.

This book is at times, laugh out loud funny. Full of little pop culture references and just general witiness it's a refreshing take on heroism that is still grounded in reality like other successful books out right now. (Sex Criminals comes to mind.) The premise is promising if a little too close to Wicked + Divine and the characters are mostly believeable. I say mostly because leading man Coop seems pretty easily sucked into protecting a girl he knows absolutely nothing about but if you ignore that, he seems real and honest which I like in characters, relatability. 

The art in this issue isn't exactly eye catching, but it isn't bad. I expected more than the neo-retro bold lines and colors contained within because the cover is so breathtaking and well done but still, the pages and panels tell the story well and it's not like any characters look alien or anything. At best the art is servicable at worst it's unintersting but the story and humor is just so spot on that you kind of forget about it. 

There's some unbeliavable moments and the art isn't up to par with the Image books it looks like Dark Horse is going to use Pop to compete with but ultimately, this is a fun and engrossing read that will have me coming back for the other 3 issues.