Posted in: Comics, Dark Horse Comics | Tagged: carlos valderrama, dark horse, giants, kaiju, miguel valderrama, post-apocalyptic, sci-fi
Giants #1 Review: Giant Monsters and Childish Dreams
The world has been made nigh-uninhabitable by a comet collision with the Earth. This brought an unending winter and giants, numerous massive monsters which now rule the Earth.
Humanity now lives underground in favela-style housing. The one we see is locked in a gang war between the Grims and the Bloodwolves. Our heroes are a pair of boys, named Gogi and Zedo, attempting to join up with the Bloodwolves by stealing "Ambernoir," a by-product of the monsters.
A run goes bad, and they are tasked with going onto the surface to retrieve a deposit of Ambernoir. Unfortunately, this may lead to them running afoul of the giants.
This comic definitely has one of the more unique setups I've seen in quite some time. It's a post-apocalyptic, gang and kaiju story set underground and will likely become something of a "coming of age" tale.
The two kids are pretty interesting in how they contrast one another. Zedo is the dreamer and more cautious. Gogi is more ambitious than cautious. Zedo wants a life outside of what they know. Gogi wants to raise to the top of the Bloodwolves. Both want more out of life, but they have very different ideas about how to do that.
The monsters are of the Pacific Rim vain of visual design, like the kaiju in Mech Cadet Yu. They have armor plating, are more hunched forward, and overall vary quite differently from the Godzilla school of kaiju design. I've become fond of it over time, and Carlos and Miguel Valderrama bring them to life in a quite gorgeous fashion.
That brings me to the art, which is all-around phenomenal. The visual design of the world is beautiful. The monsters are awe-inspiring, and you can really get a feel of their size. The characters are expressive, and motion is depicted quite well. Furthermore, the colorwork is very lively and eye-catching.
Giants #1 is a great start to a new series. The characters are interesting, the world is engrossing, and the art is fantastic. This one definitely earns a recommendation, and you should check this one out.