If you delve back through my blog over the last few years (specifically the pull list posts), you'll find that I'm a big fan of Rick Remender and Matteo Scalara's Black Science series.
Since it began, I think that this series about a group of 'Dimensionauts' hopping between realities 'Sliders-style' has been consistently my favourite comic of every single issue run I've bought in it's time on my pull list.
Now though, it's all coming to an end, with issue 43 (due out in July according to Comixology) being it's final swan song before leaving me with only Lazarus and Fantastic Four to pin my comic loving hopes on (the list used to be bigger, but that's a story for another time).
However, rather than mope in despair about this loss, as well as fear that the end will never hold up to how the series has bigged up in my head, I figured that I would instead celebrate just how good Black Science is and how much I enjoyed it.
Therefore, I've decided to re-read the entire series and then write something here on each arc/volume of the title in it's own separate post, leading all the way to a final post to about the in progress final arc.
So let's begin!!
(Though I'll try and avoid them, some spoilers will slip out. Please be warned)
Volume 1 begins the story of with Grant McKay and his Anarchist League of Scientists having achieved the impossible; they have built a method of travelling between dimensions. However, their maiden voyage does not go to plan as the 'Pillar' is damaged, meaning that McKay, his team, his children and his boss must now travel randomly through the Eververse to different, ever increasingly dangerous world's for varying amounts of time and attempt to stay alive just long enough to fix the damage and get home.
Now, this 'synopsis' is written a little generically but to get into specifics would, I think, 1. take forever to go through and 2. end up spoiling everything (just in case people reading it have never read it. Besides, I'm probably going to spoil the crap of it in a moment anyway). However, my description above barely does Black Science justice as it's first six issues feel like an absolute full speed bullet train ride of a story.
Starting mid way through the story (roughly an hour), I must admit that this first issue didn't read as good as I remember it prior, with a great deal of introspective monologuing from lead character Grant McKay as he threats over what he has done. Of course, this seems out of character for the guy I have then spent 38 issues getting to know, but then I do realise that events as they are, maybe even HE would think this way. Nonetheless, the first issue is meant to be the hook, the draw and this one does that in spades I think. It's so incredibly mysterious to start as we are treated to two characters running frantically through the forest and even all the way up until the final pages, I don't think we are given the full idea as to what is actually going on.
However, that's not the point of this first issue in my opinion, instead we are treated to a chase comic, as McKay and the short lived Jen hurtle their way around as they constantly remind us that they are on the clock. I think this 'clock watching' helps keep the pace fast and flowing, giving me little time to reflect on the lack of information I'm getting. Of course, the real draw of Black Science here is the art as I absolutely love Matteo Scalara's dark, moody, pulpy look, which reminds me of those old sci-fi serials I used to see on channel 4 like Land of the Giants and Time Tunnel.
Since it began, I think that this series about a group of 'Dimensionauts' hopping between realities 'Sliders-style' has been consistently my favourite comic of every single issue run I've bought in it's time on my pull list.
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| Black Science #1 Cover. |
However, rather than mope in despair about this loss, as well as fear that the end will never hold up to how the series has bigged up in my head, I figured that I would instead celebrate just how good Black Science is and how much I enjoyed it.
Therefore, I've decided to re-read the entire series and then write something here on each arc/volume of the title in it's own separate post, leading all the way to a final post to about the in progress final arc.
So let's begin!!
(Though I'll try and avoid them, some spoilers will slip out. Please be warned)
Volume 1 begins the story of with Grant McKay and his Anarchist League of Scientists having achieved the impossible; they have built a method of travelling between dimensions. However, their maiden voyage does not go to plan as the 'Pillar' is damaged, meaning that McKay, his team, his children and his boss must now travel randomly through the Eververse to different, ever increasingly dangerous world's for varying amounts of time and attempt to stay alive just long enough to fix the damage and get home.
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| The first six issues which form Black Science Vol. 1 |
Starting mid way through the story (roughly an hour), I must admit that this first issue didn't read as good as I remember it prior, with a great deal of introspective monologuing from lead character Grant McKay as he threats over what he has done. Of course, this seems out of character for the guy I have then spent 38 issues getting to know, but then I do realise that events as they are, maybe even HE would think this way. Nonetheless, the first issue is meant to be the hook, the draw and this one does that in spades I think. It's so incredibly mysterious to start as we are treated to two characters running frantically through the forest and even all the way up until the final pages, I don't think we are given the full idea as to what is actually going on.
However, that's not the point of this first issue in my opinion, instead we are treated to a chase comic, as McKay and the short lived Jen hurtle their way around as they constantly remind us that they are on the clock. I think this 'clock watching' helps keep the pace fast and flowing, giving me little time to reflect on the lack of information I'm getting. Of course, the real draw of Black Science here is the art as I absolutely love Matteo Scalara's dark, moody, pulpy look, which reminds me of those old sci-fi serials I used to see on channel 4 like Land of the Giants and Time Tunnel.
However, by the end of the first issue, the league (whom we get a brief intro) moves on to the next world and the 'cold open' ends, allowing for the start of the opening act. Issues two and three (and a little bit of four) change things up a little bit but I think the pace remains the same here. These issues see the team land in the middle of World War Indians as German forces are being pummelled by a technologically advanced Native Americans, leading to Ward, Shaun and Kadir to try and capture a Shaman when McKay is critically injured.
Now, this is where the mystery begins to unravel as we are treated to two stories; the present story and a flashback of how the Anarchist League ended up in this predicament. Now I loved how these issues were laid out because while the present day story continued the same level of pace as in issue 1, the flashback scenes (which were played out like McKay was dreaming them, which was awesome!) slowed down just momentarily to deliver a sliver of much needed info before ramping up again.
However, what I think I love most is how, with McKay side-lined, the entire rest of the cast is fleshed out so perfectly. It was here that I was convinced that Ward was the real hero of the series, running a sort of joint lead character placement along with McKay. This is because Ward, both in the past and present, felt like he was given so much depth as his personality shined through in the lab and his skills came out in the field. In fact, I was absolutely floored with shock when he was unable to join the rest of the characters on the next jump (such was my investment in him).
Meanwhile, while I thought the art looked a little less pulpy, Scalara's work was still terrific, as he really went all out to show us the full scope of high tech war which almost seared my retinas there was so much to it. Between him and Remender, there is no limit to their imagination, which kinda works well for a story which can offer so much variety. Of course, what I really loved at this point in the arc was the depiction of Kadir and Chandra, which actually looked so incredibly villainous but yet stopped just short of the moustache twirling to keep them in line with everything else. It was this look that really set them up as the possible villains.
Anyway, we then move into the second half of issue 4 and, more importantly, issue 5, which slowed down considerably compared to those first three instalments. This part of this first volume is considerably quieter than what has come before but this quiet moments really help sell/hammer home the likeability of the characters, even Kadir. In fact, this part of the story starts to change my thinking on how Kadir is portrayed as his moment of honesty with Chandra regarding McKay helps change him from a something of a hindrance to a character who is a little more three dimensional. While it doesn't exactly make him likable, I thought it made him much more understandable and relatable, especially with his 6th issue confession (though we'll get to that).
Meanwhile, McKay recovers from his wounds to face yet another problem (though maybe not as haste inducing as the others) that could be considered of his own making when a duplicate McKay appears to take the children. I'm not sure how I feel about this aspect of the story, although it makes sense in a story about multiple realities that other McKay's would appear. However, I did have a thought on it that this is Remender stating (in his own way) that Grant McKay is actually his own worst enemy, which would be so cool if the case. Nonetheless, this is a fun little sequence where they engage that helps get us into issue 6.
And this issue could possibly be my favourite of the first six on this second read through (not that any are below highest quality) as we get to see McKay and Kadir get into a scrape leading to being separated with only 6 minutes to return. For me, while I felt that this was bubbling since the first issue, I also believe that this is the main conflict of the entire series as it is essentially about many things: Their differing ideologies, lifestyles, beliefs and attitudes. In fact, this is no better said than with Kadir breaking this universe's Pillar attempt, and McKay stating that he was fated to destroy the eponymous device.
(MASSIVE SPOILER HERE!!!! BEWARE!!!!!)
However, what got me is the finale, whereby Grant McKay is incapacitated and has to be left behind, although not before Kadir makes a promise to return Grant's children to their mother. For me, I recall wondering on the first walkthrough if this was Kadir's hero moment whereby he becomes the lead character and less antagonistic. This then got me wondering if that meant that McKay, or rather than alternate version of him, would become the series antagonist, constantly attempting to keep Kadir from fulfilling his promise. That said, after six issues and so many changes to the status Quo occurring within them, the only thing that could be guaranteed for future arcs is that nothing is guaranteed.
And so, there is Black Science Volume 1: How to Fall Forever. Of course, I neglected to mention a number of things: The Shaman's continued presence (along with his bad ass wrist device), the Rebecca/McKay relationship and Chandra's extra-terrestrial encounter, but these things just didn't register with me and I've already put two hours into this post and so maybe they'll be more relevant in future arcs.
I will note that I forgot that Nate needed Insulin and so I wonder how he survived the rest of the series without it?
Nonetheless, this first arc was just as much fun reading as it was way back when the series started (give or take four months, I cam on board late). I'm already looking forward to later in the week and getting to Volume 2 - Welcome, Nowhere.
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| A shock departure for Ward. |
However, what I think I love most is how, with McKay side-lined, the entire rest of the cast is fleshed out so perfectly. It was here that I was convinced that Ward was the real hero of the series, running a sort of joint lead character placement along with McKay. This is because Ward, both in the past and present, felt like he was given so much depth as his personality shined through in the lab and his skills came out in the field. In fact, I was absolutely floored with shock when he was unable to join the rest of the characters on the next jump (such was my investment in him).
 |
| Matteo Scalara really knows how to make a man look villainous! |
Anyway, we then move into the second half of issue 4 and, more importantly, issue 5, which slowed down considerably compared to those first three instalments. This part of this first volume is considerably quieter than what has come before but this quiet moments really help sell/hammer home the likeability of the characters, even Kadir. In fact, this part of the story starts to change my thinking on how Kadir is portrayed as his moment of honesty with Chandra regarding McKay helps change him from a something of a hindrance to a character who is a little more three dimensional. While it doesn't exactly make him likable, I thought it made him much more understandable and relatable, especially with his 6th issue confession (though we'll get to that).
Meanwhile, McKay recovers from his wounds to face yet another problem (though maybe not as haste inducing as the others) that could be considered of his own making when a duplicate McKay appears to take the children. I'm not sure how I feel about this aspect of the story, although it makes sense in a story about multiple realities that other McKay's would appear. However, I did have a thought on it that this is Remender stating (in his own way) that Grant McKay is actually his own worst enemy, which would be so cool if the case. Nonetheless, this is a fun little sequence where they engage that helps get us into issue 6.
 |
| Black Science #6's cover, which says everything about the McKay/Kadir dynamic. |
(MASSIVE SPOILER HERE!!!! BEWARE!!!!!)
However, what got me is the finale, whereby Grant McKay is incapacitated and has to be left behind, although not before Kadir makes a promise to return Grant's children to their mother. For me, I recall wondering on the first walkthrough if this was Kadir's hero moment whereby he becomes the lead character and less antagonistic. This then got me wondering if that meant that McKay, or rather than alternate version of him, would become the series antagonist, constantly attempting to keep Kadir from fulfilling his promise. That said, after six issues and so many changes to the status Quo occurring within them, the only thing that could be guaranteed for future arcs is that nothing is guaranteed.
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| So, where do we go from here? |
I will note that I forgot that Nate needed Insulin and so I wonder how he survived the rest of the series without it?
Nonetheless, this first arc was just as much fun reading as it was way back when the series started (give or take four months, I cam on board late). I'm already looking forward to later in the week and getting to Volume 2 - Welcome, Nowhere.
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