Xombi #1

The Good: Honestly, I could make this review really short. When I finished reading this issue, I just sat back for a second and thought, "DAMN. That was a REALLY FREAKING GOOD comic. The weird factor is established fairly softly at the beginning, and segues quick into the life of David Kim, a biochemist working with nanomachines. We quickly see him establish a VERY close friendship with new assistant, Kelly Sanborne. The dialogue is so amazingly natural, we learn little details about their friendship, and their lives without it being handed right to us. It sets the pace at a very natural flow. At the same time, as the weirdness simultaneously invades both the building, and indeed the comic itself, we're treated to a number of asides by the author's narration. This is a rare perfect blend of both comic book and regular book storytelling. We're treated to a slew of unimportant details that set the tone perfectly. David and Kelly have an interesting 'relationship,' and it's a delight to see things develop. Things between them seem very obvious from the start, yet take a huge curveball as the story progresses. It's rare that I read a first issue and sit back and can easily recall just exactly how great it was, making this review really easy to write. John Rozum is phenomenal storyteller. He writes things just as arbitrarily bizarre as Grant Morrison on his Doom Patrol run, but without the severe confusion. And J.J. Birch's artwork? It's simple in a way that works. It doesn't feel like it's trying too hard, like other Milestone comics sometimes do. It reminds me most, in tone, of Joe Eisima on Morning Glories. At first it seems a little simple compared to other artists, but it suits the storytelling so well, and suddenly the artwork is as natural as the writing. Plus he seems to have a good sense of design for the weird things Rozum comes up with. The rustling husks look magnificently cool in action.
 
The Bad: Honestly, the only complaint I can come up with at this point is the cover. The cover is a bit misleading. It's gritty and gory and messy. Looks like some kind of harsh Rambo type thing. 
 
In Conclusion: 5/5 
This is some damn stellar writing here. Rarely am I so gripped by a comic. As I said, the things it reminds me most of are some pretty top notch series. And definitely if you like the new Xombi series, do yourself a favor and try and track down the original. This is a work truly worth of a collection quest such as the one I am currently undertaking.