REVIEW: ‘Kinetic,’ Issue #1

One of the greatest things about attending conventions is seeing comic book creators bring their original work to sell. With the number of comic books that are sold weekly, it’s difficult to keep up with certain series and even find new ones. By the end of the convention, I was able to walk away with a variety of different comic books that I could’ve easily missed out on reading. One of the comics I purchased that stood out the most was Kinetic #1.

Kinetic #1, which is published by Y Comics, is written by Bill Coulombe, illustrated by Rafael Chrestani, colored by Omi Remalante, and lettered by Lucas Gattoni. The story follows two brothers, Johnny and Jimmy, as they go through life living in Velo City. The two brothers live in The South Side of Velo City, which can only be described as underprivileged. Johnny has been in complete awe of the city’s superhero, The Ascender, for a long time. However, he comes to lose that admiration since his neighborhood is still in bad shape. After realizing that he too has powers, Johnny decides to take matters into his own hands when it comes to saving his city.

I was immediately hooked by the premise after my conversation with Coulombe at the Wizard World Convention in Oakland. This comic breaks the mold of traditional superhero origins. The main hero of the series, Johnny, knows he can do a much better job than The Ascender. While that could be taken as him being completely overconfident, his motivation for being a hero is understandable. As a kid, I’d always dream of making the world a better place without caring for whatever obstacles would come my way. As I was reading the comic, I saw my younger self in Johnny’s motivation. It’s rare for any comic book to make me feel like this, especially since it’s just the first issue of the series.

However, there were a few instances where the flow of the story was hard to follow. For instance, there were several flashbacks to give more context to Johnny’s character and why he’s making the decision to become a hero. While the context is greatly appreciated, having to jump from one point in the story to a completely different one was a bit confusing. Some of the flashbacks could have been included somewhere else or written in a way where they did not disrupt the flow of the story. There’s also not enough context as to why The Ascender is considered by Johnny to be a “bad hero.” The comic makes note that “no one should ever meet their heroes” but doesn’t provide a reason why. I’m sure this will be expanded in future issues, but I was hoping there would be a bit of a teaser in this issue.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading Kinetic #1 and I’m glad I was able to pick it up at the convention. From the conversation I had with Coulombe, I could tell the amount of love and dedication that went into creating this comic. It’s a much different experience to read a comic with knowledge of what went into making it than to just read it. I’m looking forward to seeing how the rest of the series plays out.

Kinetic #1 is available for purchase now on the Y Comics website.