Of all the avenues to be explored with the tale of aliens
amongst us, Resident Alien takes a rather surprising spin. With its
introductory issue, there is no large conspiracy hinted at, nor a fight for
survival between human and alien. This series avoids the pitfalls of the sci-fi
genre and instead takes a turn for the Average Joe, paring down the cliches
until you have just the man, or alien. You will not see a spaceship in a single
frame of the first issue, except for the smoke billowing from the one our protagonist,
the so-called Dr. Vanderspeigle, presumably crashed.
We find ourselves at a remote cabin where the doctor is
called upon by the police to lend his skills as a completely normal human physician or so he is able to make them
think with his extraterrestrial powers (presumably some sort of telepathy). We
the viewers are blessed to see him in his natural form, sporting purple skin,
typically large black eyes, and pointed ears. Frankly, I'm surprised our doctor
needs powers to cover up his looks in the first place, being that he's so
humanoid in appearance. Though he's been attempting to be as incognito as
possible, Vanderspeigle is easily persuaded to take on a role which puts him in
direct interaction with the locals.
What Peter Hogan has done with Resident Alien is beautifully
craft potential. Part sci-fi adventure, part murder mystery, this story is
bursting at the seams with all kinds of exciting possibilities and has you
rooting for our other-worldly doctor to fit in despite the perils of doing so.
Paired with the beautifully concise artwork of Steve Parkhouse, this series is
off to a great start and will leave you itching to find out how it all unfolds.
By Chandler Levine
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