Comics
Advance Review: “Last Born” #1
“Last Born” asks what if the big bang wasn’t the first of it’s kind, and what if it wasn’t the last? It’s a brilliant concept that is told through the lens of destiny and time travel. This first issue is a fantastic adventure that has a deeply intriguing critique of modern society at its core. In short it’s powerful science fiction that is well worth your money.
WRITTEN BY: Patrick Meaney
ART BY: Eric Zawadzki
PUBLISHER: Black Mask Studios
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: August 27, 2014
Julia is a nice 1960’s girl with a pretty fantastic life, except for her father. Years ago he was part of team that had a mysterious encounter in a cave. The experience left him detached and aloof, hardly a caretaker, and more of a burden. Yet, Julia believes the things he saw that day truly changed him, and she never quite believed that he traveled to another world, until she ends up there herself.
It’s the sort of perfect premise that is incredibly impressive. In five pages Patrick Meaney and Eric Zawadzki tell you everything you need to know about the story. It’s compelling and impressive. The rest of the issue is spent developing the world around Julia and putting many complex machinations around her to initiate the conflict of the series.
Within the premise there is the genuine horror of the being doomed. Society has a natural inclination to think about the doomsday and how it will manifest itself. Meaney and Zawadzki offer a very simple explanation that feels natural and entirely where we’re headed, with the concept of the unified singular consciousness that must consume. Think the borg, and you are pretty much there. Of course “Last Born” makes sure to identify itself as something different with a fantastic cast of supporting characters that add insight into the detriment of the future.
Zawadski’s art is nothing short of impressive. He does both coloring and art here and it really shows. His ability to balance color with the tone of the story is remarkable and intoxicating. His unique use of greens and blues come to identify his work but never overwhelm. Instead they add eerie accents to scenes on the page. His red sky and destroyed cities of the future will send a shiver down your spine, and the first encounter with the viral man is sure to haunt you long after you finish issue one.
I’m always intrigued when Black Mask Studios launches a new book. I’ve been a huge fan of the publisher since the beginning and find their titles to be vastly underappreciated by the comic market at large. Do yourself a favor and preorder “Last Born” now, you won’t regret it since it’s a thoughtful look at dystopian futures with an engaging element of time travel that feels calmly calculated. It’s confident for a debut, not afraid to ask hard questions about society and features stellar art that is sure to be with you for a while.
The supernatural world of Korean folk horror movie Exhuma grows larger with the arrival of prequel spinoff webtoon Maengjong this weekend, Variety reports today.
Naver Webtoon debuts Maengjong on May 30.
The series hails from Haemuri (Olgami) and will trace the high school origins of how shaman duo Hwarim and Bonggil, played by Kim Go-eun and Lee Do-hyun in the 2024 film, came together to face occultish threats.
The story is set to begin when “Hwarim, who has been concealing her identity following a childhood encounter with a snake spirit called Jin, crosses paths with Bonggil at their school.”
Variety notes that Exhuma director Jang Jae-hyun participated in the project’s early concept stage.
“We are presenting ‘Maengjong,’ a new series capturing the appeal of the horror-occult genre, ahead of the full summer season,” said Lee Jeong-geun, Naver Webtoon’s Korea webtoon content leader. “With the high school story of Hwarim and Bonggil, who left a strong impression in the film ‘Exhuma,’ enhanced by Haemuri’s characteristic tense direction, we expect it will be a welcome work for genre fans.”
“It is meaningful that the spin-off story of ‘Exhuma,’ loved by many audiences, expands by meeting the new grammar of webtoon,” said Lee Hyeon-jeong, managing director of the film business division at Showbox, which distributed the film. “We hope it will be a fresh experience for both film fans and webtoon readers.”
Exhuma was a breakout hit in 2024, becoming the first Korean occult film to surpass 10 million ticket buyers and the country’s highest-grossing film of the year. I wrote in my review that “the intricately woven Exhuma delivers one of the year’s biggest surprises in horror so far.”
The bond between Hwarim and Bonggil was one of the film’s highlights, making this prequel webtoon a must for fans.
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