One of the true joys of being a comics reviewer, and one that is all too rare, is being completely blindsided by how good a book is. Forsaken is a new Image book by unknown creators, and I had no particular reason to expect that it was going to be a really great read, but that is what I got. The creators hook the reader into the book early on, with the protagonists facing what seems to be a pretty certain death, and then they begin flashing back to how we got there, which takes us on a journey through a futuristic world that modern readers will still be able to relate to and features more noir attitude than you can shake a stick at. Too many times, creators trying to blend two genres, especially noir, will miss the mark and go over-the-top, but Treffiletti's dialogue and narration just pops, and Donaldson's vision of a glass and steel future with dark nooks and crannies really invites the readers in as well.
It's become a cliche to say that a comic reads like a good movie, and maybe even a little dismissive of the comics medium, but forgive me, because when I read Forsaken #1, I felt like I'd stumbled into a really good major Hollywood film. Donaldson and Treffiletti have a terrific sense of staging, notably in the group shot that introduces the team of protagonists or in the establishing shots that place our protagonist into whatever situation we find him in. Perhaps most importantly, neither the noir nor the sci-fi elements of the book are shoved in the readers' faces; instead, it just comes through naturally, with little details like aliens and hovercars in the backdrop or hard-boiled narration from our main protagonist that gives a sense of the darker world he lives in.
Speaking of cliche, it could be argued that Forsaken has a couple of them, including the bitter cop who misses his wife and child or the mysterious employer who gathers a crack team of employees, but these are time-honored elements, and Treffiletti doesn't overuse them. Instead, he makes the best use of them, so that the wife and child provide a brief glimpse of humanity for this hard-boiled tough cop and the mystery employer has me thoroughly curious to see what the purpose of this gathering is. In addition, I really like these characters, who are introduced quickly and efficiently, building a good ensemble cast without a lot of pages to do it in.
The majority of the issue is given over to Agent Delk, a hard-boiled cop in the tradition of noir thrillers since the genre was invented. It's tough to walk that line between making this kind of character an enjoyable badass and an unbelievable cliche, but Treffiletti does it well, giving Delk's narration at the beginning a doomed yet heroic quality and having his showdown with the insane religious figure a similar blend of dark and yet heroic as well. The issue is full of terrific moments, but my favorite is probably the culmination of the game of Russian roulette between Delk and his enemy in the beginning, a great little action moment that tells you everything you need to know about how this character works.
We're only one issue into Forsaken, and the creators haven't really doled out enough information to know exactly what the series is going to be about. What they have done is establish the tone forcefully and perfectly, and that tone is a smooth mix of Minority Report-style futuristic society and the noir stylings of writers like Chandler and Hammett. With a look that is unique, a fascinating set of characters and style to spare, Forsaken could be the next big thing from Image.
