Black Science TP Volume 1
Written by: Rick Remender
Art by: Matteo Scalara
When I first heard the title Black Science my corporate brain kicked into gear. “They can’t call it that” I thought “they should call it African-American science.” Once my bout of cubicle fever passed, I concluded that between Black Science and Deadly Class Rick Remender has cemented his place as my favourite author.
The ingredients for the premise are as follows: 500g Sliders, 100g Journey to the Center of the Earth, and a whole onion; sliced. The premise while cool has been done before, but it’s in the execution and combination of both the art and writing, that raises this book on a pedestal.
The story follows scientist extraordinaire Grant McKay and his scientific team who have discovered interdimensional transport through a device they call the pillar. Their ideal is that the ills of the world have cures in others, and the pillar can be used to discover these cures. However, not all on the team shares these desires and an act of sabotage sends the team to another world without the ability to control the pillar – which is now making the jump at random intervals. Every world they transport to, they leave ripples, traces of their adventures. It’s up to them to find a way home without destroying the universe in the process.
“It wasn’t until I’d met everyone else’s measure of success that I realized I’d failed myself.” - Grant McKay
There have been three books that have gotten me from the first sentence. Books that say ‘put your seatbelt on, because you’re in for one hell of a ride.’ The other two books are: Watchmen, and Pretty Deadly. But more detail on them is saved for their reviews. From start to finish, the writing in Black Science is outstanding.
The plot takes off as if someone hit the nitrous, hardly giving you the chance to breathe. There is action, adventure, romance, betrayal, and then some philosophical moral dilemmas thrown in for good measure. Even at this speed the book still manages to deliver an incredible amount of character development.
I have to stop at this point and talk about this character development, as half a paragraph does not do it justice. Each character in the book is flawed, making the characters feel real and creates these memorable moments. For instance there is this bit where one of the crew makes the devastating choice between killing someone, and staying alive. Afterwards you see them break down. It gets to you, it affects you, and it stays with you long after the last page. Each character in the volume gets their fifteen minutes, and by the end you feel as if they stop being characters, and become people instead.
Something else that rubbed me in just the right way is that within these six issues a complete story is told. There is a beginning, middle, and an end. I’m extremely glad they didn’t end Black Science after this volume, but they could have and I would be content. Only a few trades do this effectively, as most rely on the continuation of monthlies. However, this seems to be Remender’s specialty, as the end of Black Science volume one is poetry. Again, another moment is created on the last page that will leave many like me: heart-broken.
The only slightly negative thing I can say about Black Science is that the art didn’t grasp me right away. I attribute this to more me adjusting to the style than quality of work. Looking through the book for this review there are so many amazing panels that leave me in awe. There is also this amazing effect between the art and writing whereby so much of what happens is told in art, that words are not wasted.
It is also a testament to Matteo Scalara’s talent that given the task of bringing five unique worlds to life, he succeeds in every way possible. Each world the team travels too has an array of new creatures, and varying environments brought to life from the page through the artwork. That alone is worth the entry price.
Looking for a reason, any reason, for the delayed uptake on why the art didn’t sit well I point towards how the characters are drawn. If I were to criticise I’d say they wouldn’t look out of place alongside Buzz Lightyear, and because of that similarity they seem out of place in the otherwise realistic universe created. Being the only criticism I have, you can tell I’m stretching. This book pushed all my buttons, and is very indicative of my comic book tastes.
They say you can discover your favourite series once, and that’s true. What they leave out is that once discovered, you can enjoy it for a lifetime. I’m extremely happy I came across Black Science. In the brief flit through the pages for this review, it made me smile knowing just how great this book is. So with that I wish to thank the creative team and publisher for making such a delight and rate this book a rare 10 out of 10. That’s not to say that this is the be all, end all of comic books, but it is a recommendation that everyone needs check out this book and make the decision for themselves.
Art by: Matteo Scalara
When I first heard the title Black Science my corporate brain kicked into gear. “They can’t call it that” I thought “they should call it African-American science.” Once my bout of cubicle fever passed, I concluded that between Black Science and Deadly Class Rick Remender has cemented his place as my favourite author.
The ingredients for the premise are as follows: 500g Sliders, 100g Journey to the Center of the Earth, and a whole onion; sliced. The premise while cool has been done before, but it’s in the execution and combination of both the art and writing, that raises this book on a pedestal.
The story follows scientist extraordinaire Grant McKay and his scientific team who have discovered interdimensional transport through a device they call the pillar. Their ideal is that the ills of the world have cures in others, and the pillar can be used to discover these cures. However, not all on the team shares these desires and an act of sabotage sends the team to another world without the ability to control the pillar – which is now making the jump at random intervals. Every world they transport to, they leave ripples, traces of their adventures. It’s up to them to find a way home without destroying the universe in the process.
“It wasn’t until I’d met everyone else’s measure of success that I realized I’d failed myself.” - Grant McKay
There have been three books that have gotten me from the first sentence. Books that say ‘put your seatbelt on, because you’re in for one hell of a ride.’ The other two books are: Watchmen, and Pretty Deadly. But more detail on them is saved for their reviews. From start to finish, the writing in Black Science is outstanding.
The plot takes off as if someone hit the nitrous, hardly giving you the chance to breathe. There is action, adventure, romance, betrayal, and then some philosophical moral dilemmas thrown in for good measure. Even at this speed the book still manages to deliver an incredible amount of character development.
I have to stop at this point and talk about this character development, as half a paragraph does not do it justice. Each character in the book is flawed, making the characters feel real and creates these memorable moments. For instance there is this bit where one of the crew makes the devastating choice between killing someone, and staying alive. Afterwards you see them break down. It gets to you, it affects you, and it stays with you long after the last page. Each character in the volume gets their fifteen minutes, and by the end you feel as if they stop being characters, and become people instead.
Something else that rubbed me in just the right way is that within these six issues a complete story is told. There is a beginning, middle, and an end. I’m extremely glad they didn’t end Black Science after this volume, but they could have and I would be content. Only a few trades do this effectively, as most rely on the continuation of monthlies. However, this seems to be Remender’s specialty, as the end of Black Science volume one is poetry. Again, another moment is created on the last page that will leave many like me: heart-broken.
The only slightly negative thing I can say about Black Science is that the art didn’t grasp me right away. I attribute this to more me adjusting to the style than quality of work. Looking through the book for this review there are so many amazing panels that leave me in awe. There is also this amazing effect between the art and writing whereby so much of what happens is told in art, that words are not wasted.
It is also a testament to Matteo Scalara’s talent that given the task of bringing five unique worlds to life, he succeeds in every way possible. Each world the team travels too has an array of new creatures, and varying environments brought to life from the page through the artwork. That alone is worth the entry price.
Looking for a reason, any reason, for the delayed uptake on why the art didn’t sit well I point towards how the characters are drawn. If I were to criticise I’d say they wouldn’t look out of place alongside Buzz Lightyear, and because of that similarity they seem out of place in the otherwise realistic universe created. Being the only criticism I have, you can tell I’m stretching. This book pushed all my buttons, and is very indicative of my comic book tastes.
They say you can discover your favourite series once, and that’s true. What they leave out is that once discovered, you can enjoy it for a lifetime. I’m extremely happy I came across Black Science. In the brief flit through the pages for this review, it made me smile knowing just how great this book is. So with that I wish to thank the creative team and publisher for making such a delight and rate this book a rare 10 out of 10. That’s not to say that this is the be all, end all of comic books, but it is a recommendation that everyone needs check out this book and make the decision for themselves.
A Look Inside
