Eureka is a new comic series inspired by the cable television show of the same name. Published by Boom! Studios, the comic focuses on a town in Oregon where genius scientists (Aren’t they all?) work on making scientific breakthroughs for the American government. Often times, things go bad in a big way.
Fans of the Sci-Fi Channel hit show will be happy to know that the comic adaptation does justice to the story. In some ways, it adds to the already entertaining tale of the mythical town, filling in the blanks a bit on the background of Deputy Jo Lupo. Let’s face it. Other than the fact that she is a bad ass and has an affection for guns, what else do we know? The first comic chapter informs us that she has a former soldier companion, Eric, who can’t be killed for some reason. Not that he doesn’t want to die. He is dead set, pardon the pun, on achieving that goal in the worst way.
The comic does an adequate job of representing the television show, which is never an easy task. We grow close to Sheriff Jack Carter fairly quickly and even get a few laughs along the way, like when he decides to do his best Bruce Willis from Die Hard impersonation.
The first issue moves at a steady pace. At 25 pages, it fittingly enough is the length of a television sitcom screenplay. Most of the focus is on Jack and Jo’s attempts to handle a hostage situation, one that involves Jacks’ daughter, Zoe. The conflict allows us to obtain an understanding of where the partners’ loyalties lie. The ending is satisfying as well.
Artist Diego Barreto deserves some credit for staying within the lines of reality. It’s easy to get carried away with backgrounds and exaggerations of the physical nature of characters, but that would be a mistake to attempt with the characters of Eureka. They are ordinary people that become extraordinary when confronted with the world around them. They should be drawn as such and Barreto understands this.
It is anyone’s guess as to how Boom! plans to market Eureka. Is there an audience for it like top sellers like Spider-Man? Maybe not. But the creators of the comic can be satisfied knowing they are building a solid foundation of the town in comic form with issue #1.
Issue #1 of Eureka is in comic shops everywhere.
