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Issue: Descent of the Dead #1
Writer/Creator: Rich Perez
Character/Story Development: Steve Andos
Story Adaptation/Concept: Rage Ledbetter
Lead Art/Concept: Francis Penavic
Release Date: 2010
Pages: 20
Price: $3.00

“It is the year 2176, and mankind has now finally started to regain their foothold in the world since the “Zombie” apocalypse of 1968. With their numbers dwindling, and the source of their animation understood, the undead are believed to be near extinction. Humanity’s resettlement in the town of Roanoke stands as a beacon of hope for our return from the brink of extinction……but something sinister this way comes!“

Artwork: 3.5 out of 5
If I were to just flip through this issue and not take in the story and how the art relates to it I can honestly say I might have passed on it. What a mistake that would have been. I will admit that the art style is jagged and can seem choppy at times, but when taken into how it relates to the storyline I couldn’t be more satisfied with it. A Heavy Metal style of artwork lends itself to the overall enjoyability of this book through the designs of the dead, and of a world that has never been seen by human eyes.

Story: 3.5 out of 5
So I mentioned that the art really played off the story. What I meant by that was we are presented with a future that is not our own. In the reality here there are many things to be left explored. In this issue alone were treated to a new futuristic approach to skydiving which was really cool. Of course were talking the future so anything could be possible, but the way that it was taken into context here works. I felt that the very start of the story was okay, explaining how we got to the future and what mankind has done, but it was the second part with the soldiers that really kicked it into high gear. A nice cliffhanger ending easily makes me want more now, as in right now.

Dying Breath: 3.5 out of 5
It’s kind of hard to sum up a book where all of the pieces come together so well, but might not stand on their own if separate. The artwork works so well with this story, they are both gritty and unforgiving to the reader. I feel that there is a lot of potential on tap here, so I hope that future issues can explore outside the lines some more, to explain how this future has been shaped. Good concept and nice execution make this one worth checking out. I hope that it can keep up the pace in future issues because this is one I want to see more of.

If you would like to buy or know more about Descent of the Dead #1 you can find it at DescentoftheDead.com ^[1].

Review by Dan Royer

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