REVIEW: ‘The Warning,’ #7 – “Rogue Planet”

The opening page of The Warning #7, published by Image Comics, written by Edward LaRoche, with art by Edward LaRoche, colors from Brad Simpson, and letters by Jaymes Reed, wastes no time in reminding us that not only is earth under attack by an alien invasion but that a planetary body is locked on to its final destination, Earth. Giving a sense of impending doom that serves to remind the reader that even though our heroes are attempting to fight one alien force, the real enemy in en-route.

The story in the previous issue figuratively lept from the page delivering some very suspenseful action and horror sequences but upon opening The Warning #7, the pace is drastically slowed down. LaRoche seemingly switching gears and reverting back to a very slim narrative, delivered with all of the suspense and impact more commonly seen in sci-fi/horror genres.

During this opening sequence, the comic flashes back six months as readers are introduced to the first sentient alien life within the series, Prin Salu who is the Archduchess of the house Fever. Salu is the daughter of the High intelligence of the Science Guild. This introduction really struck a high note for me in the comic since we are finally getting some information about the invading alien species.

At this point, I was anticipating some lines of dialogue explaining the motive of the alien invasion or at least implying it but what was actually delivered were some frightening images with minimal context. LaRoche has a way of threading a bare amount of narrative to the story while weaving it in with some hauntingly beautiful imagery. The natural climate of the foreign planet seems to be barren, harsh, and cold. Jagged mountain tops stab into the sky, while the sun, or moon, emits a pale green glow.

Yet as the story moves forward, or more aptly as Prin Salu moves us forward, by traveling from the natural terrain to an alien built structure of such proportion it becomes quite startling, LaRoche develops scale by showing Salu as she walks next to the scenic image being described. She is so tiny that you could blink and miss her. The colors really stand out in this sense as well since Simpson uses light to draw your eye line from the building to Salu.

The alien species themselves strike a look of intimidation. They are physically pale, but human-like in appearance, bar the obvious features. Additionally, the aliens have pinkish, almost bloodshot eyes with yellow pupils, and the teeth with flecks of sporadic black. All this mixed in with their emotionless expressions creates an unnerving figure.

The one minor pitfall to The Warning #7 is that due to the extremely slim narrative the 30-page comic suddenly feels like 10. However, the joy is that the images LaRoche draws are littered with sub-plot and meaning. The details in these pictures are sometimes astounding, specifically in the second half of the comic when you follow Predator One. Overall, I would recommend reading it multiple times, you won’t regret it.

While I am a fan of the teasing nature of this story, I also find myself craving details. At some point, this story is going to have to give us more, and I hope it’s not left too late to the point where it feels like a dump of information that contradicts with how LaRoche has gone about crafting this story. Either way, I remain fascinated with where the story is heading.

The Warning #7 is available in stores now.