You know, DC’s Vertigo line has given me a lot of great comic series. These include, but are not limited to,Transmetropolitan, Y: The Last Man, Preacher, The Losers, and 100 Bullets (Which I’m still working through). Vertigo offers the absolute best in non superhero comic story telling. So, I keep a watchful eye out on their new series so I could get in on the ground floor and follow it instead of playing catch-up with trade paperbacks years laters. This search led me to a new series called Saucer Country.
The series is written by Paul Cornell. You may know him for writing the first six issues of Stormwatch with the DC Reboot but he’s probably best known for writing some Doctor Who episodes (Cornell penned the Eccleston ledFather’s Day and the Family of Blood two parter). The art is done by Ryan Kelly, an artist I personally don’t know; he’s known for doing the art on Brian Wood’s Local.
How I yearn for season 3. Cornell, come take over for Moffat. Please.
I knew very little about Saucer Country going into it. From what I read, it seemed like some sort of odd amalgamation of Sci-Fi and a Political thriller. X-Files meets The West Wing? From this point on, this review may contain some SPOILERS. RUN FOR YOUR LIFE.
The series centers on the Mexican-American governor of New Mexico, Arcadia Alvarado, a Democrat that has decided to run for the presidency of the United States. The night before she’s scheduled to declare her candidacy she awakens from a daze in a car with her ex-husband. Imagery of the stereotypical aliens plague her mind as she tries to brush it off and prepare for her announcement. Throughout it all, Arcadia proves to be a witty character with quick back and forth with her staff.
A side story involves a Harvard professor that it very interesting in UFO Lore and the visual hallucinations that he’s begun to see and talk to. I’m assuming that he’ll later figure into Arcadia’s plot as a less good looking Fox Mulder type.
Governor Alvarado makes her speech, rousing the crown with powerful words as she declares her candidacy. Immediately after the declaration, Arcadia confides in her two closest advisers and tells them that she was abducted and that the planet is being invaded. The comic ends.
I’m not sure what to make of this series. It has a strong, compelling story that really drew me in and the art is strong and bright. It definitely looks like it has promise, especially if it blends its Sci-Fi elements into today’s current political issues. I’m definitely going to keep picking it up for the time being and am hoping for great things. With Cornell’s magnificent writing, I don’t see it disappointing anytime soon.
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