By Dustin Cabeal

I’m glad EIR was created. I’m glad Ryan K. Lindsay and Alfie Gallagher made the book, but ultimately I didn’t enjoy it. A lot of that is on me because I’ve read a lot of comics that are very similar to EIR. That, and it’s a book that relies on its ending to make the journey worthwhile. Which isn’t bad, but it does make EIR and one and one reading experience. Unless you deeply connect to the material, but I didn’t.

The story is about a girl who is gifted an alien object that takes the form of a helmet for the girl to wear. From there she has several encounters with alien lifeforms that can be interrupted in different ways. It’s very much a story that is asking you to project your emotions into the book which isn’t a bad thing. Maybe I just didn’t have the emotional depth at the time or just felt that push and resisted.

Lindsay’s story is surreal and trippy, and I’m sure the ending will grab a lot of people’s attention. It is, on the one hand, a fantastical story, but then also a deeply relatable tale as well. Lindsay’s dialogue is sharp and consistent. He quickly builds the main character up and develops her over the course of the short story.

Alfie Gallagher’s artwork fits the story and provides a range of emotions that aren’t always clear with the dialogue. It’s detailed, but a lot of the backgrounds lack substance. It’s not too distracting, but it just shows an opportunity to make the visuals more engaging. The creature designs are great and the strongest aspect of the artwork. The coloring is bright, but the color choices are almost too vibrant for the style of the story. It gives it a carefree vibe, but the underline impression that you get from the story is that this is anything but a carefree adventure.

The issue is currently on Kickstarter. I encourage you to try it out for yourself. There’s relatively no risk to supporting it since it’s a completed work and you’ll be exposed to new comic talent which is more important than anything else. While this story wasn’t for me, that doesn’t mean it’s not for you. I bring with me the sum of all my reading and so while this book didn’t tap into my experiences in a new way, I can still appreciate the effort and skill that went into making it. Decide for yourself.

Keep making comics.

Score: 3/5

EIR
Writer: Ryan K. Lindsay
Artist: Alfie Gallagher
Colorist: Triona Farrell
Self-Published
Kickstarter Link