Monday, March 12, 2012

The Manhattan Projects #1

Writer Jonathan Hickman has staked out a place in comics as the guy who tells offbeat science fiction stories using some of history's most famous figures (SHIELD being the best example).

In The Manhattan Projects he uses a (more of less) recent figure - Robert Oppenheimer, one of the key scientists in the development of the atom bomb.

But as the story reveals, the group assembled for that task was devoted to much more than just the A-bomb. In Hickman's creation, those scientists are working on various fringe science fields - and they face attack from a similarly-structured team of assassins representing the Japanese.

It's crazy, over the top, loaded with surprises - and more than a bit of horror. So far, it's a heck of a lot of fun (though definitely on the black humor side of things).

I really like the artwork by Nick Pitarra, whose work I'm not familiar with - but it has a brash, almost underground look to it that works perfectly with the story. It reminds me a bit of Frank Quitely's work (high praise indeed).

The story's off to a roaring start, and promises many more surprises ahead. Different, but in a good way. Recommended!

Grade: A-

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