Broken Frontier

As best as I can tell, it all started with Tim Burton’s Batman. Never before had comic books enjoyed such a brilliant spotlight, as movie-goers from all over the world flocked to theaters, spurred by a massive, unprecedented marketing campaign, that plastered the Bat-logo on everything from t-shirts to Slurpee cups.

Burton’s Batman spawned a number of lackluster sequels and a variety of comic-inspired flicks such as The Crow, The Shadow, and The Phantom. Hollywood is a fickle place, though. When most of these adaptations, with the exception of The Crow, failed to live up to expectations, film producers and studio execs went looking elsewhere for the next big thing.

Years later, enticed by Christopher Nolan’s rejuvenation of the Bat-franchise and the unexpected success of Jon Favreau’s Iron Man movies, Hollywood set its sights back on comic books. What’s different this time around – aside from an obvious evolution in technological capabilities – is that the interest isn’t limited to anonymous producers and executives.

LUCID represents the latest offering in a recent trend that’s seen a number of high profile actors, screenwriters, and directors throw their hats into the ring as producers of comic book projects. Presumably, the premise here is to use the comics medium and its zealous, fiercely loyal readership to develop creative properties for distribution in a variety of media.

It’s a smart strategy, one that may help expedite the long, arduous process of producing movies, as creators can approach studio execs with properties that have already succeeded in building a solid fan base amongst consumers who traditionally latch onto virtually any comic-inspired film. The danger, of course, is that the shelves of our local comic shops will be inundated with a deluge of half-assed, rushed-to-print titles, which will likely make their next appearances in quarter bins across the continent.

Fortunately, such is not the case with LUCID. Jointly published by Archaia Comics and Heroes star Zachary Quinto’s Before the Door Pictures, LUCID springs from the imagination of True Blood actor Michael McMillian. The plot chronicles the adventures of combat mage Matthew Dee, as he battles sorcery and demonic invasions for the U.S. government as its specially appointed “Protector of the Realm.”

A self-proclaimed comics buff with a healthy curiosity about magic and the occult, McMillian turns in a surprisingly tight script. His plot enjoys a swift pace, driven by the frenetic Matthew Dee, whose cynical personality and quick wit embodies the book’s thematic conflict between magic and science. As Dee struggles to reconcile the twin pulls of reason and imagination and the supremely unexpected turn his life has taken, he draws the reader into the world of LUCID, providing a familiar vessel with which to navigate its esoteric waters.

Young rising star artist Anna Wieszczyk provides a distinctive visual look to LUCID that evokes the kinetic movement of Manga fused with the refined sensibilities of European design. The result is a unique artistic style which appears a little rough around the edges but which also contains hidden subtleties embedded in jarring camera angles, the excellent use of speed lines, and beautifully suggested backgrounds.

McMillian and Wieszczyk work exceptionally well together, despite their relative inexperience. They have an obvious passion for their creation that lends LUCID the heart it needs to distinguish itself from other similarly-produced titles that come across as little more than off-putting PR exercises.

Buoyed by intriguing characters, a fast-paced plot, and exuberant visuals, LUCID is a surprisingly strong first offering from Archaia and Before the Door’s joint publishing venture. Kudos to Quinto and the folks at Archaia for taking the time to produce a title that reads like an actual comic book first and a potential movie pitch second.