Time Before Time #1
- WRITER
- Rory McConville, Declan Shalvey
- Artist
- Joe Palmer
- Letterer
- Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
- Cover Artist
- Declan Shalvey
- Publisher
- Image Comics
- Price
- 3.99
- Release Date
- 2021-05-12
- Colorist
- Chris O'Halloran
"There never seems to be enough time to do all the things we want to get done." These words open the letters column for Time Before Time #1 and double as a mission statement for the series. The newest Image Comics series follows Tatsuo and Oscar, two men who want to use their jobs as time-traveling delivery men to escape a doomed future. In their way stands the Syndicate, an illegal smuggling operation that happens to employ them. With a strong premise and a healthy dose of atmosphere, the book stands out as a remarkable way to explore time travel. Much in the way films like Looper and Terminator made people rethink the repercussions of travelling through the past, Time Before Time charts out its own course to make a mark on the future of sci-fi.
Time Before Time #1 opens in the year 1987, as a man named Tatsuo drops off a mother and son into their new home. Upon returning to the year 2140, Tatsuo speaks with one of his bosses about his position as a time-travelling delivery man for the Syndicate. Tatsuo and other employees of the Syndicate travel through time to smuggle people and goods to wherever they'll be the most profitable. After being reprimanded and billed for breaking one of the company time-travel pods, Tatsuo hatches a plan to steal a time machine and escape to the past. Alongside his co-worker, Oscar, Tatsuo crafts the perfect escape scheme. Unfortunately, as the two men return to work for one last job before they execute their plan, a series of unpredictable events results in tragedy, changing the future of their lives forever.
Writer Declan Shalvey teams with relative newcomer Rory McConville, who is coming off of the success of Write It in Blood. The pair set out to establish an engaging lead character and a unique premise before jump across multiple different time periods in this first issue. Luckily, they are incredibly well-equipped for the task at hand and deliver the complex ideas with ease. By streamlining the cast to a few core characters, Shalvey and McConville are able to build up Tatsuo and Oscar as down-on-their-luck everymen. They're easy to root for and watching them work towards their goals feels rewarding. Beyond that, the transitions between time periods are expertly handled, due largely to the work of letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou. It is impressive to see how much information these creators are able to fit on every page without ever slowing down the frantic pace of the book.
Time Before Time #1 is expertly drawn by artist Joe Palmer. Palmer shows a clear mastery of storytelling. His clean layouts allow for the details of the panels to shine through. There is a particular sequence of Tatsuo and Oscar walking down the street that utilizes a fish-eye lens effect and highlights Palmer's unique talents. Beyond that, his characters feel simultaneously animated and dramatic. Palmer's art has a raw energy that makes every person feel like they have a soul and a life of their own. A large part of why it is so easy to invest in Tatsuo comes from how Palmer tilts the character's head or reaches his hand outward. These details make a huge difference.
However, the book's greatest strength may be the work of colorist Chris O'Halloran. O'Halloran chooses vibrant color palettes to reflect the changes in time. The book leans into blues and purples when in 1987, various greys for 2140 and a range of yellow to brown for 1963. Each of these choices helps play on aesthetics associated with the eras, but beyond that, it helps to emphasize that something has changed without having to read a word of text. A truly great comic can succeed without a single word, and it is O'Halloran's work that makes the concept of jumping through time feel visually clear.
Time Before Time #1 is a unique series. On one hand, it is a gripping crime story with a very human heart. On the other hand, it is a frantic sci-fi adventure with wild potential built into the premise. By combining these elements, the creative team have launched a versatile book that could go in any number of directions. The strong foundation of this first issue is sure to bring readers back for more, and with all of time at their fingertips, Shalvey, McConville and Palmer have lots of room to create a future sci-fi classic.