Vietnam 1969: Young men grouped in a shallow bunker discussing heroes. This is how the comic opens, in a tone that is dark, yet hopeful. Hopeful for the end (a theme this issue keeps); hopeful for the end of the chaos and destruction. We see this theme in the world today. We may not be at war now in the traditional sense of the word, but we are at war. We are at war with each other. A fight over equality, science, and wealth is here in our country, rearing its ugly head and threatening many people’s lives. In war, we search for allies, for those who see what we see, for those who help to bear the burden. Soldiers need allies, too. This story is a story of two allies who met as soldiers.

We follow two men in two wars. One we know (Vietnam), and one forty years later. We see these allies, a Black man and a white man, support each other through a war; we see them supporting each other now though life. What the war is in the present day we have yet to discover, but we can only assume it is violent and dangerous like any war is. There is an air of mystery around this first issue and the town called Juarez which they are headed to.

This comic is a great reminder of what happens in war with beautiful, yet gritty, art by Luca Casalanguida.  If you are a fan of military themes, action, and war movies or just need a reminder of the havoc war causes, pick this up at your local comic shop.

Creative Team: Aleš Kot (writer), Luca Casalanguida (artist), Heather Moore (colorist)
Publisher:  Image Comics
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