Cosmic Detective
by
Jeff Lemire, Matt Kindt, David Rubín (Illustrator), Xulia Pisón (Flatter), Kike J. Díaz
A happy little sci-fi romp that I chanced upon and backed on Kickstarter purely because the minds leading it are Jeff Lemire and Matt Kindt – two names who have done remarkable things in the comic medium during the past decade or so.
The basic premise is that in a dark Blade Runner-esque city, an unnamed detective gets called to a local murder. A murder which is hinted to be something quite unlikely and unbelievable trying to understand and solve the murder, sends him on a path of surreality, confusing clues and mysterious twists that threaten to blow up everything, including his life.
It is hard to explain more than that without giving away spoilers – but suffice it to say that it is quite an intriguing story and one that keeps your interest all the way through. I will give a caveat however, that this is definitely a story in the more surreal realm that I would describe as a strange mixture of elements and styles that reminded me peak Jack Kirby and Philip K. Dick. It is solid, hard and surreal sci-fi and for me personally, that was a great space to be as a genre fan and more so, a solid fan of the aforementioned two creators.
Lemire and Kindt weave a tale that is at one level an easy to follow storyline that doesn’t go out of its way to keep you confused – something that bothers me about a lot of fiction (on paper and on screen) for some time now. Yet at the same time it is layered and complex and full of ideas that you can pick up on depending on how much you absorb and ponder what is presented.
The Kirby comparison for me was also a very crucial one because while the Kindy and Lemire style in the presentation is very apparent, I can see so much in the style that is (intended or not) almost like a love letter of sorts to the frenetic, energetic and explosive visual style that made every single page pop and was very much a hallmark of King Kirby in almost everything he did.
A well crafted and solid done-in-one project from these two creators and it was a joy to watch their creation come to life. I was fortunate to back it and for my efforts I kindly received a great insert artwork within the lovely hardbound edition + I also got a pack of cards with artwork from and inspired by the book which is a fun little bonus.
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One Happy Monk 
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