Comic Review – Groom Lake #1
If you’re a conspiracy nut, you already know all about Groom Lake in Nevada and possibly have an irrational fear of extraterrestrials. If you’re like me, you can’t wait for the day when aliens finally show up on Earth. After today, Groom Lake #1 from IDW Publishing has me siding with the nutters.
Publisher and Editor-in-chief of IDW, Chris Ryall begins the 4-issue series of abductions and government cover-ups along with artist Ben Templesmith to provide the necessary probe accoutrements and hot Women In Black.
We’re quickly thrown into a world that neither we, nor our main character Karl Bauer are prepared for. He believed his father Barnabus dead, when in reality he was abducted and drastically altered by aliens and left for the government to nurse. Agent Leticia Pope drags Karl to New Mexico for a reunion but things go a bit awry in the compound. Good thing Leticia had her Sonic EMP-Driver (nice nod to Doctor Who) with her. An unusually enthusiastic alien named Archibald, who smokes two cigarettes at a time, has Karl on edge but apparently he’s there to help. With the next Manhattan Project.
I’m not entirely clear where Groom Lake is going yet but it has intrigued me enough to wonder where it will go. It’s not as perverse as Templesmith’s Welcome to Hoxford (not yet anyway) or as amusing as Wormwood, but it does share some some of the wit and visuals of both. Ryall, who I’ve never read before, does some fantastic introductions for his characters but falls short in getting the actual plot across clearly in this first issue. Templesmith’s little grey men are simple and cute but it’s his blood splatterings that make an impressive visual as per usual. According to Templesmith, IDW is staggering the release of the second issue to give retailers a chance guage interest. You’ll probably hear a lot of Men In Black or X-Files comparisons but in reality it’s not like either. MIB was never this vulgar (in a good way) and Mulder never would have made it past the killer robot.
Groom Lake #1, on sale now.
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I agree with you…I totally want the aliens to arrive. Like that old SNL Deep Thought skit I want them to make us their pets so I can get a basket bed with my name on it.