Science fiction is perhaps the genre within comics which is the most permissive of the true potential of the medium.  The medium is after all one which can effectively show anything that the writer can dream and the artist can draw, and because of the realities of our place in the universe, it is unlikely that anyone reading comics in the modern day will likely ever make it very far past low orbit.  In comparison through the medium of comics, mankind can travel the stars from the luxury of their homes, and while movies or television might be a magnificent setting for sci-fi, they are also restricted in their ability to be produced so quickly.

It is thus that Empty finds itself as a series in one of the most fertile grounds that there is for science fiction, and it doesn’t fail to disappoint from the beginning, though perhaps not in the same way.  As opposed to a great space opera, this series fits differently within the genre, instead being that rarer case of science fiction, that which focuses us to look internally while looking to the stars.  The story here is fairly simple, at least as much as the concept allows it to be.  A young hunter from some alien race returns from the barrens, indicating that almost all is poisoned.  He discusses with the town elder what can be done, but there is nothing, at least not until a farmer from another alien species washes up on the shoreline, uncertain of how she got there.  She soon proves to have more powers to heal than she knows and the two are off into the barrens to end the poison once and for all, but not before being set upon by events that they could not foresee.

This first issue ends up being a decent look at the problems of mankind as we fail to do as much as we should for our own environment, while equally debating the solutions and even making them criminal acts unto themselves.  Clearly there is more to the story than this critique, as the story also delves into some action sequences, but it certainly makes one wonder if there are other forms of intelligent life out there if they are on the same semi-destructive path.  Regardless of outcome, the story is one which is promising if not a bit overwhelming in its first issue, bit it is still definitely worth a look for its different approach.

Story and Art: Jimmie Robinson
Story: 8.6 Art: 8.6 Overall: 8.6 Recommendation: Read

Image provided Graphic Policy with a free copy for review.