Review #7: Blue Nemesis

Blue Nemesis

Written by James Maddox

Art by Stephen B. Scott

Imagine if you will, being part of an interstellar exploration team headed out to explore strange new worlds. Sounds exciting doesn’t it? For any fan of Star Trek, we’ve all imagined ourselves at the helm of the Enterprise exploring the universe. But you may never have imagined what would happen if our space ship crashed on an alien world and was damaged beyond repair.

Imagine yourself there – running low on supplies with no hope of rescue, and the captain decides she needs to take decisive action to assure the survival of the essential personnel. The solution: remove the non-essential or “useless” crew. However this alien world presents an unexpected complication – no one can die.

This is the back drop for Blue Nemesis, a new graphic novel from the minds of James Maddox and Stephen Scott. The story has a very classic Sci-Fi/Horror feel to it, but at its core has a very human element. The writing of James Maddox and the art of Steve Scott are perfectly married here to create a gripping and harrowing story.

I recently had the pleasure of reading the preview issue of the creator owned comic book Blue Nemesis. Written by James Maddox with art by Steve Scott, it is one of the smartest written and attention-grabbing books I have read in recent history.

James Maddox is quickly becoming one of my all-time favorite writers. This is a man that knows how to write an intriguing story. He has a unique skill narrative efficiency – revealing a lot of detail and substance to the audience without being heavy-handed in his writing. Every line of dialogue is smart, meaningful and relatable. The story unfolds in very naturally and organically. None of the plot devices feel thrown-in or out of place. James truly shows his mastery of the genre in this piece.

I find his writing style brilliant and refreshingly original. IF you haven’t read anything by Mr. Maddox do yourself a favor and check out his work – you will not be disappointed. Many of the works I’ve had the pleasure of reading has demonstrated the same degree of originality and wit.

To fill in for the words James doesn’t need to write is Stephen Scott – a renowned illustrator lending his work to many popular comics ranging from Batman to Indiana Jones to the X-men. And in my opinion, every panel of Blue Nemesis is a masterpiece in its own right. An artist’s passion for a project and his love of a story is clear to see as it comes through on every page. Whether it is the detail in an exterior shot of the crashed space ship or the expression on the face of a crew mate on the edge, Mr. Scott has clearly poured life-blood into this project.

In the context of the spaceship there is a classic space sci-fi feel similar to the Alien franchise. And throughout the story and settings. the art and story meld beautifully together in Blue Nemesis shows what these two masters of their craft are capable of. I hope to see many more collaborations between these two powerhouses in the future.

I give Blue Nemesis 9 out of 10 capes. A must read for all comic book fans. Look for it coming soon.