Publisher: Dark Horse Comics/Turnaround Publisher Services
Author: Frank J. Barbiere
Artist(s): Colin Lorimer, Micah Kaneshiro
Release Date: 13th Nov 2014 (UK)

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Honestly, I’m not sure if it isn’t a neat little meta gag on the part of writer Frank J. Barbiere that this particular story is filled with so many holes. After five issues of Dark Horse’s Blackout, I still found myself feeling somewhat lost, not having any real investment in either the characters or the storyline progression as a whole. The series introduces us to Scott Travers, a fairly unremarkable man who ends up in possession of a technologically advanced suit that enables him to move in and out of the world via holes that lead to a shadowy parallel dimension. I mean, that premise sounds promising enough, right?

Sadly however, throughout the duration of this collected edition, we aren’t told very much about the origins of suit itself, or the evil corporation trying to reclaim it, or – well – about anything, really. Mystery is one thing, but expecting a reader to stick with a title when it’s never really clear what’s actually going on is a lot to ask. It could be forgiven, to a point, if the main protagonist was in any way compelling, but unfortunately the characterisation of our ‘hero’ Scott Travers is almost painfully shallow, alternating between angst-ridden reflection and cheesy one-liners without any real rhyme or reason.

The artwork, provided here by Colin Lorimer, is serviceable, but ultimately falls a little flat. While it does admittedly come to life during the action set-pieces, the majority of the conversational scenes between characters are fairly lifeless. The series also featuring some fairly generic character design, outside of Travers’ suit itself. The artwork in issue #0 however, provided by Micah Kaneshiro, is far more dynamic, and as polished as some of Lorimer’s work can undeniably be, I can’t help but think that keeping Kaneshiro as the artist for the entire run would have given Blackout the jolt of energy it so desperately needs.

Overall, while Blackout does have an undeniably intriguing premise, the execution is flawed, making it a shallow, frustrating read. We’ve previously championed the work of Barbiere on the likes of Five Ghosts and White Suits here at the Big Comic Page, but there’s no getting around the fact that this is an uncharacteristically disappointing outing from a supremely talented writer. It has its moments, sure, but unfortunately these moments are few and far between, and while there may be a ‘long game’ at play here for a possible follow-up somewhere down the line, I’m afraid that after five issues of treading water, my interest in this series has waned almost entirely.

Rating: 2/5

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PREVIEW ARTWORK.
[Click thumbnail for full size image]

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You can purchase Blackout Volume 1: Into the Dark TP from Turnaround Publisher Services (who generously provided the review copy of this title) via their official website.

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The writer of this piece was: Craig Neilson (aka Ceej)
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