Written by: David Lapham
Art by: Mike Huddleston
Publisher: Dark Horse
For those unfamiliar with Dark Horse’s #1 for $1 program, it’s basically exactly what it sounds like. They put out the first issue of a series for $1 so that people on the fence about starting a new series can spend $1 and figure out if they want to get into the whole thing. Everyone wins, really.
The Strain began as a horror trilogy of books written by Guillermo del Toro (whom most will know for directing Hellboy, Pan’s Labyrinth, and Pacific Rim) and Chuck Hogan (author of Prince of Thieves). Add in the fact that The Strain has been adapted into a TV series that premiers July 13th and The Strain #1 may be the best #1 for $1 that Dark Horse has ever done.
The first issue of The Strain is seemingly perfect in doing its job as a first issue. Del Toro is no beginner when it comes to the horror genre and David Lapham has done a fantastic job of adapting the novels into comics. Small details enrich the story and Mike Huddleston illustrates each panel with that in mind.
It’s important for a first issue to both introduce plot and characters but to also not get us bogged down in an abundance of things that don’t matter and the Strain really succeeds in doing this. You get a feel for the characters and the plot itself within very few panels and it becomes easy to succumb to the things that make The Strain standout as a comic. One of the things that will really jump at you is how much the gore and facial expressions really pop. The entire comic maintains a sort of dark and constant color scheme and feel, great detail is put into key character expressions, and gore was given just as much detail. It makes both, which are often presented during key character or plot points, help hammer in the importance of the events and draw general attention to the overall horror that is happening. Which there is definitely a lot of.
I don’t really want to ruin any of the plot, even though the series has been out for a few years, but the general series revolves around a commercial airline that lands in an airport seemingly dead of any and all of and a mysterious disease that it could have possibly been carrying. The nice thing about this is that it gives you multiple angles of horror to look at. It opened with a story seeming of legend, there’s presented the idea that human infections are both very real and not as killed off as we often think (think the swine flu craze), and then there’s that touch of something that may be more paranormal than biological. It’s an interesting set of ideas to work with and you can barely end the issue without wanting to instantly read the rest of the series (which is possible at this point, as the whole series has been out for awhile). It’s interesting and unsettling and you end the issue unable to shake that feeling that something very, very bad is about to happen.
The Strain is a must-buy at full price in my opinion. If you are debating picking it up just because you heard about the show, then this #1 for $1 is something you absolutely need to take advantage of. And for everyone else who just thinks it might be neat, your dollars should already be being spent inside your favorite comic shop. Not a single person should feel like their money wasn’t spent well. In fact, your only regret should be that you’re upset you need to wait two weeks to pick up the first collection, which contains Issues 1-11 and is due out July 9th.
