Terrorbytes #1 // Review
Ted Hawks has a really tricky sales pitch for investors. It's about 10 years from now and he's trying to sell this idea. This technology. Why do you have to be miserable while you die? Hawks’ tech plugs directly into the brain. And it allows you to have an experience that is exactly you. But without all the dying. Until you do. Hawks is going to have problems in Terrorbytes #1. Writer Mark Russell opens a new sci-fi series for Mad Cave with artist Felix Ruiz and colorist Fran Gamboa. It’s and appealing sort of a cyberpunk sci-fi premise that explores an angle on the sub genre that doesn't often get much attention: the metaphysics of death.
“Let’s face it,” Hawks says. “Dying blows.” And it's not like he's not right about that. But he's not expressing it in a very eloquent way. So he's going to have problems selling the idea. Not to mention the fact that people just don't like thinking about death. So it's not something that's going to be a very easy self for anyone. And given the fact that it's going to take a lot of investment, there's going to be some serious issues. Not to mention the fact that he's going to need to have actual test subjects to beta test the technology with. And that's not going to be easy.
Russell has developed a fun sort of a atmosphere for what it is that he's doing. The repetition of a couple of different presentations to a couple of different investors does feel a little weird. But it does amplify some of the elements of what it is that Russ is exploring. There's real potential for exploring a lot of the nature of memory. The entire premise is that you get your own memories plugged into you at the moment of your death and you relive them. Only you don't know that you're really reliving them. To you what's happening for the first time. There's a real chance for a Philip K dick style, twisting of reality with the premise. It could be a lot of fun to see where that goes if there is some kind o stinger at the end of the series. Or at least in the second issue. There's a lot of weird stuff that could be going on that would be a lot of fun.
Ruiz the renters are very believable future that would be 10 years from now. The visual reality of it feels familiar enough that it doesn't look like it's unlikely to happen. Physically anyway. There is some darkness in the way it's presented. However, the stylishness that one might hope for with this kind of a science fiction story doesn't quite hit the page in the first issue. Some of the design work does look very cool. But it's not as visually appealing as something like this would need to be in order for it to really create any kind of gravity on the page.
It's a promising opening. There's a lot of potential with the concept. In the artwork articulates with it pretty well. The challenge is going to be finding some way to explore the premise that's going to continue on as the serious progresses. Now that the basic premise has been delivered. There is going to be some issue with where Russell and Company take it. It's possible it could be driven in a direction that's too dark or not engaging enough. It's a really crucial time for the story. Once it hits it second issue. For the time being, it's just a really nice premise and a fun concept for an opening issue.
