Beast of Boriken #1 // Review
2017. Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. Loli’s being awakened. The hurricane has arrived. The power’s already out, though. The storm had already hit nearby Yabucoa. The winds took out the entire power grid. Through it all Juanchi’s been quiet. He’s a parrot. He knows what’s coming...maybe better than any human who might be taking care of him. Loli’s dad is safe at the hospital. She’s looking out the window when she sees something...inhuman. The beast in question reveals itself in Beast of Boriken #1. Writer Julio Anta opens a contemporary horror story with artist Daniel Irizarri and colorist Patricio Delpeche.
Eight years later, Loli is an environmental activist. There’s a big beachside resort scheduled tobe built in the area and Loli is speaking-out against it. The gentleman in charge of the project claims that he only wants to improve the local economy and bring jobs into the area. Loli knows that another resort is only going to increase income inequality and make it thta much more difficult for Puerto Ricans to live in Puerto Rico. She’s not the only one that’s disturbed by the project, though. There’s something that’s heard the sound of the construction...something that has awakened...
Anta delivers a respectably enjoyable introduction to a monster horror story. Monster as defender of the ecosystem...or as unintended consequence oh human expansion has been around for a very, very long time. Anta does a solidly respectable job of focussing the story exclusively on the specifics of modern Puerto Rico and the issues it faces. El Chupacabra isn’t exactly a hero here. It’s a vicious beast, but it IS attacking in response to an unscrupulous development, so he DOES come across as a bit of a hero...but really...Loli is the face of heroism in a first issue as she tries to stop a development which is upsetting the creature.
Irizarri and Delpeche bring together the visual drama in a story that’s really heavily weighted in the direction of the interpersonal human end of the story. Anta is investing a lot of time in establishing the human face of the series in advance of what are likely to be many more scenes featuring the monster as the series continues. The art team does a good job of delivering that drama to the page in occasionally sketchy art that still manages to feel tight and deft in the face of emotional nuance.
The opening of the series seems appealing enough. The basic format of this particular monster story seems to have a lot of parallels to a Jaws-style pacing. The central antagonist of the story may well be the monster, but the bulk of the narrative is really going to focus on the conflct between developer and activist. Judging from the first issue, it feels like the series feels lke it’s going to be more of a focus on the conflict between people than it is about the monster in question. In any case, it IS an engaging drama.
