In the 11th Millennium of the rule of the Eternal Empress, a squad of planet-smashing super soldiers find their routine mission to be anything but. These are the Forged. They take no prisoners. The Forged #1 kicks off the action with introducing us to the sci-fi world while also delivering a lot we’ve seen before.
Written by Greg Rucka and Eric Trautmann, there’s a lot I liked about The Forged #1. It’s a sci-fi story featuring soldiers being sent on a mission they have a bad feeling about. If that sounds familiar, it’s because we’ve seen that exact story many times before. And that’s the bad thing about The Forged #1 as well. We’ve seen a lot of it. While the art is great and the setting and characters are interesting, at its heart is a plot that’s been done over and over.
The Forged #1 is forged from a lot of what’s come before. In the description it’s mentioned that it’s inspired by Conan, Heavy Metal and “other comics you tried to hide from your parents.” In its DNA is also Aliens, The Fifth Element, Starship Troopers, and a lot more. None of that is a bad thing but it also puts the pressure on to deliver something that’s a bit different from all of those elements. Unfortunately there’s only a little of that.
What gives the series hope is its core of characters, the actual tactical team being sent on the mission. Their comradery and interactions save the comic and make it entertaining enough to check out as well as continue on to the second issue. Likeable characters, though each fitting a certain role, keep things going and make the read worth it.
What’s also worth it is Mike Henderson‘s art. With color by Nolan Woodard and lettering by Ariana Maher, The Forged #1 is an intriguing start taking place mostly on a ship. It’s all rather unremarkable for the most part, creating an almost sterile feel to the issue. And that’s actually interesting. With intriguing character designs in the stories they tell, it’s a world that feels a bit “clean” but with a slight grime just underneath the surface. There’s some great colors that pop at times enhancing intriguing page layouts at key moments.
There’s nothing inherently bad about The Forged #1. It’s entertaining sci-fi action. It’s problem is so far it’s sci-fi action we’ve seen before. The troops getting their orders preparing for the drop on a mission you know is going to get fubar. It’s rather pain by numbers in that way. Still, it’s an entertaining read setting up potential for an intriguing world and hopefully more interesting mission to come.
Story: Greg Rucka, Eric Trautmann Art: Mike Henderson
Color: Nolan Woodard Letterer: Ariana Maher
Story: 7.65 Art: 8.4 Overall: 7.75 Recommendation: Read
Image Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Purchase: TFAW – Zeus Comics – comiXology/Kindle
