Even though the Quantum Age happens in the future of the Black Hammer universe, it wavers back and forth between being written like a Golden Age science fiction tale and something that might be written now. It begins with a character named Archive talking to a disembodied voice only called Mother. Archive is part of a collective race, like the Borg minus the conquering other species aspect. Archive wants to go into the world to see what it’s like to be human and to come back and report the data he finds. He’s thrilled about this, and shortly after entering school, he becomes a member of the Quantum League, with races and species all around the galaxy, fighting for justice and protecting the innocent, but as with every story in the Black Hammer universe, nothing is ever that simple.
I somehow missed issue #2 when it was released, but issue #3 is clearly written and self-contained enough that I didn’t feel like I was missing anything for this issue to work. It worked extraordinarily well. Watching the team that I know nothing about reassemble years after they had separated has been surprisingly enjoyable, because Lemire finds his way into the heads of the individual characters and allows us to relate to them.
The one thing I find myself doing while reading these Black Hammer mini-series is looking for how it will connect back into the main series right away. I become impatient. That’s totally a “me” thing, but when a new connection appeared in this issue, I audibly gasped. Lemire has done a really good job with the mini-series in regards to that, and it’s because he’s really made me care about the characters in this universe in such a short time.
Wilfredo Torres has given this book the look and feel of a Golden Age sci-fi comic, and Dave Stewart’s colors are vivid in the same way. It’s super fun, and even as the darker realities shift in and the innocence of earlier times drifts away, I still feel like the adventure is just beginning. This and the rest of the Black Hammer universe are absolutely worth checking out!
Creative Team: Jeff Lemire (writer), Jeff Lemire and Dean Ormston (creators), Wilfredo Torres (art), Dave Stewart (colors), Nate Piekos of Blambot (letters), Ethan Kimberling (designer), Daniel Chabon (editor), Brett Israel (assistant editor)
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Click here to purchase.
