New Story Arc Means New Jumping On Point
What happens when a wannabe sci-fi novelist discovers that everything he wrote about was true and he was being hunted by alien races? After last issue's twist, the story will be taking him in a new direction.
The Good
Even though the story deals with alien races, spaceships and intergalactic wars, there's always been something about this series (compared to the other Stan Lee BOOM titles) that felt a little more real. The idea that the lead character, Benjamin, wanted to be a sci-fi author and was really writing about the history of his people without knowing it was an interesting twist. Finding himself hunted by other species of aliens that simply want his death is what creates the excitement and feeling of adventure in the story. Of course, last issue we discovered that everything is not as it seems. What happens when Benjamin discovers this truth as well? To add to the twist from last issue, yet another bombshell is dropped adding yet another layer to the story.
With the story taking place in deep space and on Earth, there are different environments seen which helps to add a feeling of vastness to the world and universe being created here. The different alien species that are after Benjamin serves to give us the feeling that we're dealing more than just a small group of characters. There are numerous species out there and any one of them can enter the story at any time. Whether it was Khary Randolph or Matteo Scalera, someone needs to be applauded for creating all the different alien designs and spaceships.
The Bad
It could be that we have two artists but the art felt a little inconsistent on some pages. There also seems to be a lot of red throughout the issue. It makes sense in most scenes like when the characters are their starcraft but even when they land on a planet, there seems to be a lot of red used to color everything.
Being the first issue in a 'new' arc, we have a little bit of set up. For me, it felt like more set up and left me wanting more.
The Verdict
When the three Stan Lee/BOOM titles were first announced, Starborn didn't seem like it would necessarily be my favorite of the bunch. As the story has progressed, this title has moved to the top. The idea of a sci-fi writer making up stories that turned out to be about him and his alien heritage felt a little cheesy in the beginning but the story has evolved into something else. Last issue we saw a twist that will further change the life of the main character and it's going to be interesting when he finally discovers the truth. To add to that, we get yet another new development in this issue. With this being the beginning of a new arc, new readers can jump in and get caught up. And you'll want to now before everything hits the fan.