Rating: 4.5/5 – A complete story, beautifully done
Station to Station is a well written and beautifully drawn one-shot from Dark Horse. This story originally ran in three parts in the monthly Dark Horse Presents, and has been collected here as a single issue. Created by husband and wife team Corinna Bechko and Gabriel Hardman, they set out to do an Outer Limits inspired science fiction story. A group of scientists have created a machine that they were hoping would be able to look into alternate time periods. Something goes horribly wrong and instead, the machine has opened up a gateway to other dimensions and universes. Now that opening has brought over some strange and deadly creatures and aliens.
This catastrophe is the highlight of the book as we get brief glimpses at some of the things that got brought over. From a crashed alien ship with it’s dead alien pilot, to a pterodactyl like creature that looks as though it’s been domesticated, what comes through that gateway is just as interesting as the story itself. One of those aliens is the large creature that can be seen on the cover above and serves as the story’s villain. This creature has the power to take over people’s minds which gives the protagonist extra problems. Not only is he trying to fix what he feels he broke with his machine, but he also has to deal with it alone as his fellow scientists are now being mind-controlled by this alien. From the opening pages I got a similar vibe to the Frank Darabont directed The Mist, which I’m personally a huge fan of so that’s a very good thing.
Station to Station is a great read that opens up a world of future storytelling possibilities. While the story is great, Hardman’s art is cinematic. His layouts, and where he chooses to put the reader’s perspective is perfect. And his creature designs bring you back to the old school sci-fi theme that he was going for. At times, considering that this appeared in three short parts, the pacing tends to move rather quickly. There’s one scene in particular that deals with the domesticated pterodactyl mentioned above. The scene loses some of it’s impact as there was no time to build up to what could have been a big pay-off. This minor complaint shouldn’t keep you away from what’s an overall exciting, and complete story.
It’s rare nowadays to purchase a comic that has everything you need in one issue. There’s no back story, no continuity, and nothing you need to know to jump in and enjoy this tale. That’s what makes this book so fun and refreshing.
Reviewed by: Shawn Hoklas – shawn@comicspectrum.com
https://comicspectrum.com/ Covering the full spectrum of comics culture
ComicSpectrum Comic Reviews 