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Dark Spaces: Wildfire #1
- Writer:
- Scott Snyder
- Artist:
- Hayden Sherman
- Letterer:
- AndWorld Design
- Cover Artist:
- Hayden Sherman
- Publisher:
- IDW Publishing
- Price:
- $3.99
- Release Date:
- 2022-07-20
- Colorist:
- Ronda Pattison
As the comic book home to some of the most beloved properties in pop culture, IDW Publishing is spreading its wings with a new line of original series. Dark Spaces: Wildfire #1 by writer Scott Snyder, artist Hayden Sherman, colorist Ronda Pattison, and letterer AndWorld Design is a headline-grabbing anthology series that's about to take big swings. It explores the nature of people and what they do when they're put in the most perilous situations imaginable.
Set during the events of the Arroyo fire that gripped California, Dark Spaces: Wildfire #1 follows a group of women inmates from a prison who are part of the Forestry Firefighter program. The audience discovers a little more about each woman and their respective backstory throughout the pages, including Brooks who has the kind of information that might burn ears and warm hearts. She reveals there's a nearby mansion -- abandoned and loaded with cash and other valuable items. It's an easy score under normal circumstances; however, these folks are in the middle of a raging wildfire. Consequently, the women need to make a serious choice and decide if they're ready to risk it all.
Dark Spaces: Wildfire #1 is a huge departure from what audiences have come to expect from Snyder. Essentially, it's a heist story taking place in the midst of a wildfire, which makes for an intriguing premise. While it's something different from the writer's wheelhouse, it's instantly gripping. Snyder chucks the reader into the throes of suspense. Snyder delivers an engaging ending by the end of the issue, but the journey there is just as entertaining. There's something to be said for a gritty, survival narrative that could happen in the real world with real stakes.
Sherman's style feels heavily influenced by John Romita Jr.'s approach. There's an incredible amount of detail in each panel, making one wonder how long this issue must have taken the artist to draw. Every leaf, every branch, every groove in the wood -- that's the level of granularity that Sherman goes to here to deliver an intricate and comprehensive view of the environment and its characters.
Fans familiar with Pattison's work coloring IDW Publishing's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles might be surprised by her work on Dark Spaces: Wildfire #1. Her unique technique suits Sherman's line work and adds a mood of anxiety and tension to the imagery. Considering the theme of fire and danger, Pattison chooses mostly warm colors -- namely shades of orange and red – to paint the scenes here. Rounding off the creative team, AndWorld Design delivers another professional lettering performance, choosing to let the art and story shine rather than try to do something radically unusual.
Dark Spaces: Wildfire #1 is one of the most unique comic books in a long time. It doesn't feel like the type of premise that would be explored in comics, lending itself more as a Hollywood screenplay, yet it works. This story starts off on a high note, proving that originality is well and truly alive in the medium -- and not everything needs to be about capes and cowls.