Aliens #1

I'm not going to spoil this one...


I certainly didn't see that one coming, but I am a bit afraid for the title. Certainly storytelling options like the ones used by John Arcudi make more sense in a book like Aliens, but those decisions mean we are moving to issue 2 knowing very little more than we did on page 1 of issue 1. A research vessel arrives on a newly discovered world, with a crew anxious to explore alien structures on the surface. Problems arise when the discovery team doesn't take too kindly to the arriving scientists. From the odd dialogue and actions of the discovery crew, I've got to think they have been possessed or replaced by the alien beings who built the structures. The odd thing is that there isn't too much panel-time devoted to the famous movie Aliens. The Aliens we do say go after some folks in the opening pages, but I'm not sure I understand how that relates to the rest of the story in the issue. This may end up reading better in one sitting...

Arcudi does spend enough time showing the things we all want and expect from our Aliens plots though. The awakening from space pods, the industrial feel of the spaceship, and the near-future feel of the tech like the guns and bulldozers.

Zach Howard is new to me, but his Aliens look scary, his guns look good, and he seems to be able to draw action just fine. The tech looks appropriate and he draws people well. I liked that he didn't go for cheesecake in the pod-awakening sequence, even though there is a close shot of a woman walking out in her undies. I'm intrigued enough to check the next issue, but I'm hoping things become clear sooner rather than later.

Fair