The Resistance #1
- WRITER
- J. Michael Straczynski
- Artist
- Mike Deodato Jr.
- Letterer
- Sal Cipriano
- Cover Artist
- Razzah, Mike Deodato Jr.
- Publisher
- AWA Studios
- Price
- 3.99
- Release Date
- 2020-03-18
- Colorist
- Frank Martin
As one of the newest comic book publishers in North America, AWA Studios has assembled a full murderers' row of creative talent for its first wave of titles, with J. Michael Straczynski and Mike Deodato, Jr. reuniting for The Resistance. The launch title kickstarts the Upshot Universe, the publisher's shared universe feature in its mature readers imprint Upshot, which sees a new generation of superheroes arise in the fallout of a global cataclysmic event that has frightening real-world parallels.
In The Resistance, a virulent contagion with a devastatingly high kill rate sweeps across the planet, resulting in the deaths of untold millions. As the governments of the world react to the pandemic and the societal instability that has progressed from the global catastrophe, the infected who miraculously survived begin to mysteriously develop superpowers in the face of rising totalitarian regimes and heightened lawlessness.
Straczynski is no stranger in developed grounded, postmodern variations of the superhero genre, including reimagining the Squadron Supreme for the Marvel MAX imprint and co-creating the Image Comics/Top Cow Productions title Rising Stars. Like Rising Stars, Straczynski has an inciting incident that serves as the catalyst for the larger story, but the use of a global pandemic and the subsequent government response certainly has feels unintentionally timely given current events. This definitely isn't a fault of the creative team, since work had begun months on the series before news of the coronavirus outbreak surfaced this past December, but it is an admittedly uncomfortable parallel as the carnage unfolds.
And Mike Deodato, Jr., paired with frequent collaborative partner in colorist Frank Martin, certainly brings his A-game here. After years of honing his artistic craft on superhero titles for Marvel, Deodato is given more free rein to really cut loose with his visuals in this opening issue. More shadowy and murkier than his mainstream work, Deodato provides an unflinching look at the contagion as it proliferates around the globe, bleak but never particularly unsavory. It is perhaps the most grounded work the art team has delivered in recent memory, with Straczynski proving he and Deodato still have strong collaborative chemistry after previously working with him on Amazing Spider-Man.
This opening issue really does move at a more deliberate pace than many may be accustomed to; the creative team really wants the effects of this cataclysmic event to be felt before setting up the presumable opponent for the eponymous resistance and establishing the rise of the super-powered figures in its wake. That said, this debut does bring the apocalyptic intensity to the forefront, from the overarching perspective of the world governments to that of the average individual on the street caught in the virulent maelstrom. So while the issue can come across as an extended prologue to the proceedings, it's a prologue that never feels like it's spinning its wheels since Straczynski and Deodato hit the ground running.
With its impressive line of creators setting the foundation for a new shared comic book universe, the opening issue of The Resistance makes a hell of a mission statement for AWA Studios. J. Michael Straczynski and Mike Deodato, Jr. pull no punches as they throw readers into the middle of the hellish world they've created, with loads of unsettling real-world parallels and allusions. And as the high stakes are firmly established, the book quickly pivots from one focused on the end of the world to one that promises the start of a new one from its ashes, perhaps a larger metaphor for more ambitious things to come from the new comic book publisher.