Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Rasl by Jeff Smith SF SMITH

Rasl used to be a physicist studying the secret nature of energy. Now he jumps between worlds, stealing art from parallel dimensions much like our own. Each time he jumps it takes a greater toll on his body and his mind. And if that wasn’t bad enough, a very ugly man is following him and will kill the parallel people he loves in an infinite number of worlds unless Rasl gives the government the secret behind dimensional travel (which would likely lead to the destruction of all universes).

This is Jeff Smith’s new series! The artist/author/creator behind Bone!!! Excitement abounds! First off not all bone fans will like Rasl. Bone was dark in places Rasl is dark and gritty throughout. Think of it as a mix of two fisted noir fiction mixed with a sci-fi adventure. While that is awesome in its own way, it is different than the fantasy adventure of Bone. The art is just as good as his work on Bone for the most part, but I miss the weirdness of Smith’s fantasy world. His limitations as an artist are more apparent when working in the real world. I’m also worried that the more melodramatic moments of Bone will be more common in this book too. Rasl is kind of a clichéd character, dark and gritty with a past he wants to forget in a bottle and the bed of various women. So far Smith is able to keep the sci-fi and pulp elements original enough that the clichés don’t bog the book down. This is a very promising first volume and it definitely leaves me wanting more, but it will take time to see if it captures the magic of his previous work. A must read for fans of pulp fiction/sci-fi comics or fans of Bone that want something darker.

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