When a white orb washes up on the shore of a remote Latin American village, a group of children poke at the strange object to see what it is. The orb explodes, leaving the children completely blind. And when a beautiful young woman who may be an alien is found wandering the seafront, she’s taken in by the townspeople, but soon becomes a person of interest to a pair of CIA agents, and the target of affection for a young scientist.

Collecting the four issue Vertigo series written by Gilbert Hernandez with art by Darwyn Cooke and colors by Dave Stewart, The Twilight Children is an interesting series that feels more like a concept than a full fleshed out story and that seems to be on purpose.

Hernandez’s story is interesting in that it presents a sci-fi(ish) story without a lot of specifics. What are the orbs? Who is Ela? None of that is really explained as much of the story is left up to the readers to interpret and explore themselves. And that’s what’s fascinating is that you can read the story multiple times and come away with something different each time. It’s a story where you notice something new, or come up with a new theory with each read. It’s the open ended nature of the series that’s one of the best draws about it.

Of course Cooke’s art is the draw. It’s damn near perfect in almost every way enhanced by Stewart’s coloring. The two together are a match made in heaven. Cooke’s designs, as with everything he has done, are unique stylized and beautiful to look at. The art is just amazing to look at and kept me engaged with the story as the narrative itself is rather slow on its own. In many ways the story is beautiful, and Cooke’s art makes that apparent and makes sure the reader notices.

If you’re looking for a story with a story completely laid out, this isn’t for you. But, if you’re looking for an interesting sci-fi story that leaves a lot for the reader to decide and piece together this one’s for you. It’s a story that leaves the reader to put together as much as what’s presented by its creative team.

Story: Gilbert Hernandez Art: Darwyn Cooke Colors: Dave Stewart
Story: 7.9 Art: 10 Overall: 8.1 Recommendation: Read

DC Comics/Vertigo provided Graphic Policy with a FREE Copy for review