Brain Boy #1

The Team

Writer Fred Van Lente Artist R.B. Silva

Even coming into this new property as a fan of Fred Van Lente, I still have a certain amount of skepticism. It can be quite difficult to introduce enough new ideas and characters to make a first issue relevant. To be fair, the new superhero line at Dark Horse has actually been quite robust quality wise. Also Lente is an extremely talented creator worthy of delivering on the promise of any new book. It is also an interesting perspective to go into a series with fresh eyes, or not knowing anything about the premise of the title which happens to fill my perspective on the project. It seems that many times over the course of his tenure on comics, the creative thinker tends to start incredible series and not end them quite as strong. Hopefully this can be the story that breaks his streak with me.

Upon reading this issue it became clear to me that Van Lente wrote this specifically for his artist, which of course plays up the strengths of what is at hand in this series so far. The snarky yet subdued personality of the lead character really draws readers into Brain Boy. It was also great to not really need the extra context on the series, as the simple premise fleshed itself out over the course of this issue. Interesting characters and environments are delivered in spades here, with some really great writing as well. Readers are not given much context to what happens towards the end of this issue but it still manages to draw them in for the most part. The visual aspects of the powers attributed to the lead individual were a wise decision that makes the title seem to matter more in this context. I cannot stress enough how well this issue is paced. By the time readers get appropriately acclimated to the lead, new facets of the story immediately start to intrigue the reader into mystery.

R.B. Silva steps up his game considerably in this first issue. The artist shows some lovely restraint in the course of these first few pages. The inking and coloring job shows a different sort of side to his artwork than seen before. It also works incredibly well with the script of Lente, as it displays great facial expressions and action. His style is wonderfully accommodated by the inks and colors of Rob Lean and Ego. The art is much more interesting towards the conclusion of this comic when the coloring spruces up the background and page layouts. The inking also looks quite strong in the highlights of objects, giving the cartoony aspects some due elegance. The first splash page featuring the character embodies everything that readers will fall in love with. Hopefully the crew can consistently deliver this immense quality in the coming issues.

This is a wonderful first issue with awesome personality offering something different for fans. Those who have missed the fluid artwork of R.B. Silva will be in for a fun surprise as the surroundings are mixed up to create something interesting. Anyone looking for the fun new Fred Van Lente comic series will also be pleasantly surprised. This comic has a little something for everyone.