Revival Volume One: You're Among
Friends
Issues #1-5
Publisher: Image Comics
Story: Tim
Seeley
Art: Mike
Norton
Rated: M/Mature
Genre: Horror
Price: $12.99
Revival
is the story of a small town in Wisconsin where the dead have risen
from the grave. I know what you're thinking; “Do we really need
another zombie story?” or perhaps even more pointedly, “Doesn't
Image already have a fairly successful little zombie comic running
right now?” Believe me, before I purchased this book I had the
same thoughts, but within the first few pages you'll know that this
story is very unlike many other zombie stories. As it's presented
the revival seems to be a very isolated incident, one which results
in the quarantine of the town, CDC involvement, and attempted
pilgrimages to the site. In many ways it's like an anti-The
Leftovers;
a small town's struggle with an unexplained event, the return
of their loved ones, and the consequences of those returns.
The
revived people are not like the zombies we've grown accustomed to,
they're not rotting, flesh eating killing machines, they're just
people that do most things people do; they're just dead while they do
it. The reactions to their returns vary, as you'd expect. There's
happiness that loved ones have returned, there are those that found
closure and now are confronted with their dead friend or relative all
over again, dead victims wish to find their killers, religious groups
all have their own interpretations; all of the realistic real world
responses to such an event are presented. Then, when it's time for
things to go sideways with some of the revived, it goes really
sideways, to grisly effect.
The
art does the job, without being extraordinary. What I was most
struck by was Mike Norton's ability to create such a diverse set of
characters. The cast features many ethnicities and body types.
There's a large Hmong population, a CDC doctor with Muslim parents
and more. The population is not made up of only athletically gifted,
superhero physiques. It's an actual populous with just about
everything represented, something that cannot always be said about a
comic book, and it's refreshing.
The
one gripe I could have with this collection of issues is that there
is a lot of information and characters to introduce. There are so
many that at times I found myself warming to a character just in time
for the story to jump to something else, leaving me hanging. It
seems clear who the main characters are going to be, but there are so
many different stories to tell regarding the denizens of Wausau,
Wisconsin that I would have appreciated a little more time to get to
know them. A little more focus would have been nice. It's such a
small thing, that is sure to be rectified in coming issues, that it
seems almost petty to mention it. Be that as it may, it was
something that I noticed while reading.
Conclusion:
Revival
is a zombie story unlike many of those out there. The real world
reactions and varied cast of characters will make it easy for just
about anyone to jump right in and enjoy the story. The lack of focus
through the first few issues is sure to be resolved, which will
create a multi-layered story that horror comic fans will relish.
Rating:
8/10
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