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DARK MINDS-A REVIEW
The book, which when solicited looked just like an Image rip-off of a hot movie viewing genre has turned out to be one of the most in-demand books of this summer. Pat Lee's DARK MINDS hit the shelves in mid-July and was an immediate sell-out coast to coast. It loks, smells and feels so much like a good Anime adventure that you'll be ready to order Sushi when you sit down to read it.
The tale begins with a the bizarre and very gruesome death of a business executive in his office. As part of the investigation, Agent Nagawa of the S.I.U.(Special Investigations Unit) is called in. The detectives on the scene, viewing that the victim had "poked his own brains out" call it a "creative suicide". Further investigation reveals that the Paradox Killer has struck again.
Back at headquarters, Nagawa meets his new partner: Agent Nakiko. Trained in ordinance, weapons, close combat, and psychology, she is also a Level Two Cyborg whose field of study is Psionic Investigation. Later, in the morgue, Nakiko tries to tap into the psyche of the victim, but to no avail.
Back home, trying to get some sleep, an intruder breaks into Nakiko's home. She is assaulted and there is a massive explosion.
That's all until next months folks! Talk about your cliffhangers!
You may recall that Pat Lee was the penciler behind BLOODPOOL. Well, this book looks and acts NOTHING like his previous work. Lee, along with writer Adrian Tsang, inkers Alvin Lee and Alan Tram, and background and separation artists Lou Kang and Angelo Tsang have created the most vibrant Anime styled book ever. Each and every panel LOOKS like an Anime cell; each page is pieced together to resemble the famed Japanese Perfect Albums Dialogue is pasted in as an extension of the page; not as part of it. For anyone who loves this style of animation, this book is a find.
And the writing? The dialogue is snappy; imagine X-FILES with a little more innuendo. Recall that Nakiko specializes in Psionic Investigations. That means she can read minds and does so to nagawa very early on; a joke which comes back to hanut him before the issue ends. Steeped in cyberpunk, this future world is filled with floating TV cameras and cocky detectives and a little bit of the old secret society.
If you have to haunt a copy of this down at a show and pay more than cover, do it! And tell your shop owner to reserve you a copy of issue #2 now. This book will only grow both in value and in quality. Hats off to Pat Lee and company for turning a what could have been a poorly inspired genre rip-off into a masterpiece in the making.