Written by guest contributor Lance Lambert
In the more recent months, there has been a new topic arise in independent comics, Post Modernism. This philosophy has been around for years, stemming from writings by John Baudrillard. It pushed its way into popular culture with Andy and Lana Wachowski’s The Matrix. Now comics like The Surface, Arcadia, and The Tomorrows attempt to tackle the theory. This is by no means an easy feat, but The Tomorrows team faces it head on.
The Tomorrows is set in a dystopian society that lost its connection with reality through the rise of technology. Mustached men on TV screens is replaced with advertisements and TV shows. To make matters worse, all self-expression is lost with a single mandate, criminalizing the creation of art. The protagonist, Zoe Holloway, is a culprit of this exact crime. Encountering the consequences she is saved by an underground team called The Tomorrows, who are specially trained to battle this institutional evil.
Sadly, this unique idea was not executed well. The writing fell victim to the theory it worked to express. The story doesn’t develop much from there. You are introduced to the team. You realize a couple clever names that represent dead artist. Well, that’s about it. Aside from the story there’s not much to the art either. Something I struggle with accepting is the keywords listed at the bottom of the page. While it is wonderful for reader’s unaware of these ideas to be exposed to them, it could be handled in the writing. The reader is given less work, only adding to the mundane result of the comic.
The Tomorrows is a great attempt at a concept on the rise. We see more areas of our culture delving into the ideas, most recently apparent in art. However, there needs to be more fresh, unique approaches. The Tomorrows did not bring much of anything new to the table. Much of the praise goes to the team’s effort to further the conversation in comics. When it comes down to picking it up off the racks, you might just want to stick to philosophy section in the library.
Score: 2/5
The Tomorrows #1 Writer: Curt Pires Artist: Jason Copland Colorist: Adam Metcalfe Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Price: $3.99 Release Date: 7/8/15 Format: Ongoing; Print/Digital