Is It Good? Resident Alien: Suicide Blonde #0 Review

I started reading this series with no knowledge of the creative team or the series itself. This #0 issue was a collection of the short stories appearing in Dark Horse Presents. Without any way of knowing what the comic would be like I jumped right in. So is it good?

Resident Alien: Suicide Blonde #0 (Dark Horse Comics)

The plot is pretty basic: an alien crash lands on earth and has the power to appear as a normal human. He meets some important people in the town and proceeds to assume the position of the doctor in the local hospital. The old doctor was murdered so the alien, Harry, starts to look into the case.

The issue starts off with a trippy dream sequence that sets the stage for the next scene. There are two Native Americans in what appears to be the alien’s home environment. It turns out one of the Native Americans, who represents a modern day character knows that Harry is an alien.

The issue revolves around two parts of the story’s timeline: the present and about two years ago when Harry first crashed. Each side of the story reflects a very different theme. In the scenes from the past we find out that the government is trying to figure out what happened when Harry’s ship crashed while Harry is trying to hide in society as a normal person. His English is shaky, and he needs money, food, clothes and a car. The story is like that of an immigrant trying to make a life in America.

Fast forward three years and Harry has made a name for himself as a loyal and caring doctor in a small town. Temporarily disabled, a new, young doctor takes over in his absence. People come to Harry to complain about this new doctor who isn’t nearly as good as he. The issue ends with Harry resolving to give the newcomer a little coaching.

As for the writing, it’s pretty good. The writer has managed to create an interesting enough plot, it’s just that the scope of it is pretty small. Don’t expect much action in this comic, as almost all of the drama comes from gossip of the townspeople. The dialogue is good without taking any risks. Never once did I laugh or find something someone said particularly clever. I will say, the author did an excellent job introducing us to the characters who all seem to be somewhat appealing.

7.0

• Introduces the characters and story nicely
• Good dialogue

• Some of the art is just awful
• Not a very ambitious start

The art is definitely the low point of the comic. All of the people don’t look lifelike and some of the coloring is cringe worthy. It is honorable that the artist did everything himself but that doesn’t make up for all of the robotic looking people.

Is it Good?

Yeah. The overall scope of the project could be a little bigger, though.