"Habitat": A Quick Word About the Format

"Habitat" was originally serialized in the pages of the "Island" anthology magazine that's producing so much great work these days. Since this is a collection, I suppose I should call it a "trade paperback." It is not a hardcover and does fit the "TPB" format fairly closely.

To me, however, this feels like the true destination this story always had in mind. The serialization in "Island" was a means to an end of getting this story complete under one cover. As it is a single story, I like the "original graphic novel" description for it better.

I wish it was a hardcover book, because then I could just call it an "album." In fact, the page size of this collection is slightly wider and taller than the standard Image trade paperback. It feels more like a Franco-Belgian album, with its slightly narrower, but taller pages.

I'm going with "OGN".

Onto the Review

"Organic" is the word I keep coming back to when I try to describe this original graphic novel. Done entirely by Simon Roy, it's on sale from Image Comics next week for only ten bucks.

It's a futuristic thriller where civilization is on the brink of collapsing. Several warring factions are heating up their weapons and gunning for each other.

I know what you're picturing from that description, but the book looks nothing like that. That's half the fun.

"Habitat" looks like Babylon 5 if the station looked more like a Mayan stronghold. Fashion is reminiscent of a time before technology, but then supplemented with walking platforms, 3D printing, circuit boards, and metal walls (though often overrun with vegetation). The above image is a walking engineering platform. Yes, it walks.

In the midst of all this, a young and newly enlisted soldier winds up in possession of an interesting artifact after his first run-in with the enemy. That artifact puts him at odds with the chain of command, causing him to run away while a squadron of troops -- armored, but in loin cloths and carrying bows and arrows -- chase after him to the ends of the station. Politics makes for strange bedfellows and new partnerships are formed on the fly.

Roy's characters are well defined, but the book is more about the civilization as a whole and the different factions of it. There are little character bits along the way, but don't mistake this for a sci-fi soap opera. As much as the format feels fitting of a more Franco-Belgian presentation, so does the story. It feels more Jodorowski than Roddenberry. The ending isn't a conclusive finish to the story. It's just a shift in the status quo, with a lot left up to the reader. This book is more about the experience than the plot. It's more about world building (and tearing down and rebuilding) than it is about The Chosen One and His Epic Personal Journey.

It makes me want to read the book again, which is about the highest compliment I can give a book. Now that I've seen all the factions and know better how they fit together, I bet more of the book will more easily make sense as I go. When you're reading this the first time, you have to accept things and keep moving. On the second go-around, I bet things will come together nicely.

The Visuals

Simon Roy takes no shortcuts throughout this book, often pausing on large images to show off the world. There are jaw dropping moments when he pulls back to show a large building or the station as a whole, curving up into the distance.

This isn't your typical two point perspective drawing with rectangular buildings and sharp corners. (This might be the first review I've ever come close to using "rectilinear" in.) I'm not even sure I could understand how to work out the vanishing points to make that perspective work. When the horizon line is a curve, I can't imagine it's too simple.

Roy's entire book feels based on rounded edges. It's not just the buildings and the weaponry. Even all of the panel borders are rounded off. Again with the organic nature of the graphic novel, those panel borders break up in a very cool natural fashion.There's not a single straight line in this book that looks like it was drawn with the help of a ruler. Not a single panel border or complicated piece of tech looks anything but hand drawn without any attempt to make it technically gifted.

The lettering, of course, is included in that. It's done by hand on the art boards. It does get occasionally very sloppy and might require a little extra time to process, but it works out ok. It's the little background bits of lettering that threaten to steal the show, though. When a character leans over to look around the corner, a little "LEAN" sound effect accompanies him. Roy does little things like that throughout the book, always effectively.

Colors have a watercolored look to them. They take on mostly natural earthtones. For the most part, they stay bright enough to highlight the art, though there are a couple of scenes in darker places where it gets to be slightly too much. It looks like the digital version might be a bit brighter. If you're particularly concerned about art that's too dark, the digital version of this book might be the most acceptable. The paper edition works well enough for me, though.

There's a nice sketchbook section at the end, showing up plenty of Roy's pencil roughs for character and building designs, as well as how some of the technical mechanisms work.

In Conclusion...

I'm a fan.

"Habitat" is an accomplishment in modern mainstream comic books. It's a bit off the beaten path while still feeling exciting and mainstream. It's visually lush with a consistent style across all the disciplines. This is a handmade book that's the product of a singular vision, and it shows.

For ten bucks, it's a great one off graphic novel that will have you pausing to take in the visuals while also wanting to speed through to the next page to see what happens next.
 You only need to wait one more week for it.

If you can't wait that long, go to the back issue bins and seek out "Island." It's worth a look, anyway.