When it comes to shock and awe, Robert Kirkman is the best to do it, especially in modern comic terms. Be it The Walking Dead or surprise shipping comics to stores, he always seems to know how to grab your attention. That is evident with Void Rivals, a new series from Skybound with Kirkman re-teaming with Lorenzo de Felici. Introducing a new sci-fi concept with two warring cultures, the surprise is likely going to knock you back into your chair.
That surprise will be discussed in this review, so please stop reading if you want to avoid spoilers. Before we get to the spoilers, however, Kirkman is taking this series very seriously with its two alien races known as the Zertonians and the Agorrians. The issue opens with a downed spacecraft on a planet as barren as the moon. A fist shoots through a window and out pops a robot-looking alien. Kirkman paces this issue perfectly, slowly revealing the alien’s culture via a conversation with a helper AI, and soon, a clash with another alien rival.
Felici’s art, along with Matheus Lopes’ art, is fantastic. The colors’ subdued quality gives it a more realistic feel. One can tell Felici’s robot design is meant to create a familiarity with humans — the yellow coat, for instance — but also an isolated, disconnected feel, thanks to the robot helmet. Much of this story rides on the body language of the Zertonian and the Agorrian, which is incredibly important since they slowly bond throughout the issue.
The art is fabulous.
Credit: Skybound
The big twist, however, is what everyone will be talking about. In the closing pages, these once bitter rival aliens come across an alien ship. That ship eventually rises and stands, revealing a familiar Transformer. Details are scarce, but there’s just enough to pique your interest while you wrap your head around this comic, the big opening salvo to Transformers at Skybound Comics. It’s an intriguing setup, thanks to the work done with the two main characters. These once-bitter rivals have just realized they aren’t alone in the universe. There’s something else far bigger out there. This leads to a somewhat touching final few pages as we learn the war these cultures have may be entirely meant to subjugate and control the people.
Outside of this being a bold introduction, I will say it does feel a little slow. This will likely read much better in trade, but I wondered where this is all going since this issue is mostly a stranded survivor story. Two warring groups of aliens stranded on a dead planet, and they barely confront each other at all. This comic achieves what it sets out to do, but it feels a little light on the plot.
Void Rivals is an intriguing comic that takes a bold swing at introducing a significant new Skybound property. For that alone, this issue is exciting, but you’ll likely be wishing for a bit more when the issue reaches its “to be continued” moment.
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