Review by C.J. Bunce
Fans of the world and characters of Zack Snyder’s new multi-film franchise Rebel Moon can get an eye into some of the backstory for the sci-fi saga beginning today with a new four-issue comic book series. Rebel Moon: House of the Bloodaxe is the kind of sci-fi prequel tale we’ve seen from much longer boiling sci-fi film franchises, like Star Wars’ Old Republic tie-ins and Star Trek’s Countdown books, e.g., Countdown, Countdown to Darkness, and Picard Countdown. The first issue introduces what feels more Game of Thrones and Dune fantasy than what we saw in the first film of the saga released in December, complete with royals infighting as the central theme.
Darrian and Devra were introduced in the movie, played by Ray Fisher and Cleopatra Coleman, siblings from the planet Shasu who have differing views on their approach to the rebellion set off by Kora, the film’s central character played by Sofia Boutella. We’re introduced to the children of the Bloodaxe family after the death of their mother, and communication with their planet is cut off and the news spread by their enemies that the entire royal family is dead.
The writing is dense–much of it a giant data dump requiring characters telling each other things they should already know. Interspersed are other characters from the first film, including one of the sentient robots voiced by Anthony Hopkins and Fra Fee’s character Balisarius, along with a flashback within the backstory. It’s all set up for something, but convoluted and difficult to follow or know why we need to care about the backstory of these supporting characters. Will it all be made clear in coming issues?
Magdalene Visaggio is the writer on the series, based on what must be Zack Snyder’s early draft of the script. Recall how George Lucas’s first 1974 draft of “The” Star Wars included backstory later introduced in the prequel movies–comics are a way 21st century creators have been delivering some of that unused content to audiences. The artwork is by Clark Bint with colors by Francesco Segala.
Here is a look inside the first issue:
And here are some variant covers for the series:
Also available is this blank cover:
… and this sketch cover:
Rebel Moon Part One: A Child of Fire, the first movie in the series, is streaming now on Netflix. The second film Rebel Moon: The Scargiver arrives April 19 on Netflix. You can add Rebel Moon: House of the Bloodaxe to your pull list at Elite Comics or your local comic shop. It will be sold in a collected edition in August, available for pre-order now here at Amazon.
