Port Of Earth #1 Review

Any Port in a Storm

Written by: Zack Kaplan
Art by: Andrea Mutti
Colorist: Vladimir Popov
Publisher: Image Comics
Review by: Andrew McAvoy

Good old Earth. When will its inhabitants learn that there is no such thing as a "good deal" with aliens. They do not come in peace, they don't just come to "phone home". That's right folks, the Truth may be out there, but aliens are best kept in a galaxy far far away because on Earth people can sure as hell hear you scream. With those words of warning out of the way lets dip into see Earth's representatives roll the dice one more time with our Extra-Terrestrial invaders.

This opening installment in the Port of Earth series gives us first contact with visitors to Earth. A consortium of aliens cunningly operating as a group known as The Consortium, have made it all the way from the center of the Milky Way to Earth on their way to the galaxy's outer frontier. Good news is they've managed to make their ships run on water, making Earth an ideal port to top up on some much needed fuel. In return they'll offer us Earthlings the secrets of their technology to solve our energy problems forever.

Sound's like a sweet deal right? Well, maybe Earth's representatives underestimated the amount of traffic to the Port of Earth, because pretty soon the Port's location in San Fransisco is seeing a steady increase in visitors. Rules are imposed when the visits hit 300 per year and all contact between aliens and humans is strictly barred.  When aliens turn up in downtown San Fransisco armed and massacring the locals then it appears, in the words of Lando Callrissian, that this deal is getting worse all the time.

Pretty soon afterwards the Earth Security Agency is formed, because let's face it death isn't good for business. Despite that pretty soon the death toll from alien attacks has reached 3,000. With the scene thoroughly set by Kaplan the story then moves into what one suspects will be the setting for this series, from within the ESA with the plot following George Rice and Eric McIntyre, stars of a fly on the wall feature about the Agency. As we leave the issue, the book turns buddy-buddy cop drama, as the two agents are called into an investigation of an attack from an alien registered at Red Threat Level...

Bits and Pieces:

This first issue briskly takes the reader from the wide galactic canvas of its opening pages, to the galactic-trade agreement brokering post-first contact, before landing us gently down to street level in the company of two Earth Security Agents as they begin an invesitigation. It leaves us perfectly poised for the second installment, and its effective stage setting is enhanced immensely by some fine art from Mutti. Well worth jumping on board, and its caught my attention for the next issue.

7/10