Comic Preview: ‘The Sequels’ questions whether our nostalgia is endangering our future
Written by: Laura Hong-Tuason, CC2K Comics Editor
Remember when the movie, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, came into our lives and the misunderstood alien captured our hearts with his “E.T. phone home” line? It was an awe-inspiring tale, one in which E.T. and a boy named Elliott formed an unbreakable bond. A coming of age story filled with adventure, friendship, compassion, triumph, and the supernatural, E.T. reflected a lot of the feel-good movies, television, and stories of the ‘80s that we still love today. In fact, it seems we’re always trying to recapture the magic we once felt in the past. It’s no wonder then why Hollywood insists on rebooting the classics. But what if nostalgia isn’t such a good thing after all? What if our grasp on the past is endangering our future?
A new creator-owned comic book series, The Sequels, answers and explores this exact question. Below is the synopsis provided by Fanbase Press:
Remember the ‘80s? Avery, Gwen, Russell, and Dakota will never forget. As children, they each experienced unique adventures . . . saving the life of a sentient robot, partying with an intergalactic alien, battling the likes of vampires and werewolves, and defeating a nightmarish monster to protect imagination itself. Now, 30 years later, they’re directionless adults, still obsessed with their pasts. When a mysterious figure brings the group together to cope with their experiences, will they be prepared to live out the “sequels” to their childhood adventures?
The Sequels is a four-issue series written by Norm Harper (Eisner Award-nominated Rikki, The Naughty List), illustrated by Val Halvorson and Harvey Award-nominated Bobby Timony (The Night Owls, The Simpsons), colored/flatted by Deanna Poppe, lettered by Oceano Ransford (A Geek’s Guide to Cross-Stitch, Eisner Award-nominated Rikki), and features cover art by Don Aguillo (Rise, Winter, Isugid Pinoy!).
CC2K had the opportunity to read the first issue, which nicely sets up the new adventure that is about to unfold for our protagonists. The issue’s opening sequence, which follows young Avery’s adventure with a sentient robot, instantly takes readers back to the ‘80s. From the grainy, old comic book/comic strip type colors, to the cheesy dialogue and story of escape and freedom that Avery recounts from a distant past, The Sequels aims to take readers back in time, only to rein them back to the present for a harsh reality check.
The art and colors by Halvorson, Timony, and Poppe does the first issue of The Sequels justice in that it helps create the transition of time and outlines the tone of a given moment. When readers are taken to Avery’s present in the subsequent pages, the art becomes modern and the colors are darker, which may reflect a foreboding of adulthood and a sense of futility for a life we can’t have back. With the art alone, readers are able to feel joy, loss, hope, and intrigue throughout the issue.
While the story may sound like it begins on a somber note, it is still is a lighthearted story filled with laughter, mystery, and of course, adventure. The end of the first issue will have readers wondering at what cost Avery and the gang will go to renew their past adventures. Could it be something sinister, or maybe even something magical?
The Sequels #1: Circuit Boarders is digitally out now through ComiXology. The series will be collected into a printed trade paperback and released in July 2019. The trade paperback is currently available for pre-order through Fanbase Press. Pre-orders made by May 1, 2019, will receive an exclusive set of prints (representing each of the four covers) illustrated by Don Aguillo and signed by the entire creative team.
For more information about The Sequels:
Website: TheSequelsComic.com
Facebook: TheSequelsComic
Twitter: @TheSequelsComic