Filed under: Comic Reviews, IDW Comics | Tags: Colin Lorimer, Fox Mulder, Frank Black, IDW, Joanna Lafuente, Joe Harris, Lance Henriksen, Millennium, Shawn Lee
After IDW brought The X-Files back for it’s 10th season in comic book form…..the reigns stayed in the hands of Joe Harris for the return of it’s darker, misunderstood cousin – Millennium.
While Harris managed to harness the same charm & humour of Agents Mulder & Scully in The X-Files it was fair to say that Millennium’s Frank Black brought with it a very different character to get to grips with. The truth behind the Millennium Group itself was dark enough but Frank is a tortured soul with the death of his wife & an estranged daughter keeping him off grid since we last saw him on-screen. Frank is back though and although this opens with a flashback to 1999 & the Y2K fears being worked into the Millennium’s next plot…..or at least that’s what I take from those first few pages.
We’re then onto the real core case of the issue as a convicted killer seeks release from prison after 20+ years and ready to block his request is Agent Mulder. Frank is there in the shadows though as they share the same goal and it becomes all too clear that Franks visions are very much active. Cue Fox tracking Frank down and them putting there heads together to find out what’s really going on behind the released killers next plans. While it doesn’t quite have that crossover feel to it or even a team-up vibe really, it’s more of a case of they happen to be heading in the same direction and they’re tagging along beside each other. It works so well though & it’s great to see these two characters combining well thanks to the top-notch writing from Harris. Capturing each of their differences just like I remember them from the TV shows and bringing them into a modern case which has the same darkness from the show & an under-current of more going on than just what we’re being shown. Pretty much what separated it from The X-Files back in the 90’s.
The artwork from Colin Lorimer (art) & Joanna Lafuente(colours) has got the same gritty darkness to it as well and that compliments the work Harris has put in to capture Frank in all the glory I’d expect. I can only imagine that this will get darker over it’s 5-issue run and after just this first issue I hope that it’s not the last we see of Harris bringing the darker creation from Chris Carter to the comic book world. The start of something gripping & begs the question why it took so long to see the likes of X-Files & Millennium return to give us these types of stories…..kudos to IDW for that. With recent talks of X-Files returning to our screens we’re surely due a return of Lance Henriksen to the screen as Frank Black………and maybe with a script by Harris himself…..I can dream 😀
8/10
G-Man
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Reblogged this on Focus On The Underground.
Comment by dobrobad January 25, 2015 @ 7:01 pm