The Skeptics #1 Review
Written by Tini Howard
Pencils and Inks by Devaki Neogi
Colours by Jen Hickman
Letters by Aditya Bidikar
Reviewed by Lorna Maltman (maltmanlorna@gmail.com)
Last summer my family went to China and whilst we were in Shanghai we went to Han city otherwise known as the fake market. My brother decided for reasons unknown to me, that this would be the best place to get new leather belts, so after some painfully long haggling he bought them, only for him to realise when we had touched down in London that these were about three sizes too big for him. Skeptics deals with the idea of two people advertising themselves as the solution to America’s problems. However, being a fake national protection measure is slightly dicier than a slightly dodgy looking piece of clothing.
The setup of this comic is that is 1960’s and the Cold War is in full swing and the Russians have two psychic powered individuals. Which means that they clearly have a one up (or more like a leg and an arm up) on America. So, America needs to respond, and fast and that is where our fake psychics Maxwell and Mary come in.
Howard’s writing is decent and sets up for what could be a stellar comic, but there wasn’t any one character that made me go wow I want to read more of them and there was a British character – I’m a sucker for a bit of good old patriotism in comics. Howard uses the scepticism that our fake psychics Maxwell and Mary and their mentor Dr.Santaclara have of the Russians to highlight not only our own suspicions but also the ridiculousness of the governments at the time . Howard achieves this to great effect, even if I found myself at times in the comic having to back track because of mismatching panels and dialogue.
Neogi’s pencils and Hickmans colours instantly transport you into the world of 1960’s America and it is this which really sets the scene up for you as the dialogue doesn’t instantly clue the reader in on this setting. Some of the panels are a bit too sparse for no reason, for example a page where there is nothing in the background but blue. Apart from that the art does fit the comic.
Verdict:
Wait and See. With all the great number ones and series going on at the moment this comic didn’t give me the urge to come back to the next issue. It could turn out to be great, especially with the art, and it has the potential with a cool setup, but at the moment this is a easily skippable comic.
