A rookie cop, a mysterious thief, and a perilous ride across enemy lines where they encounter… aliens!
Writer: Jay Faerber
Artist: Justin Greenwood
Colorist: Lee Loughridge
Letterer: Thomas Mauer
Editor: Robert Meyers
Publisher: Oni Press
Cover price: $19.99
Release Date: November 2, 2022
SOLICITATION: A hair-raising, high-stakes action caper in the vein of 16 Blocks, Assault on Precinct 13, and War of Worlds, AREA 510 will blow you away!
A TALE OF URBAN SURVIVAL!
Things start out sort of normal in this 72-page book… two cops are transporting an arrested thief to their precinct. Before long, though, the overbearing partner is out of the picture, leaving rookie cop Ward trying to take prisoner Lucinda to Oakland Police HQ. They have to make it through a treacherous urban landscape that involves gangs and aliens trying to stop them in their tracks!
Jay Faerber, probably best known for his work on The CW’s Supergirl TV series as well as Image Comics’ Copperhead and Near Death, always tells stories that focus on interesting characters in unusual situations.
The character I gravitated towards most was rookie police officer Ward who, even though he’s facing impossible odds, still wants to carry out his responsibility as a cop to get Lucinda where they need to go. I mean, lesser persons would likely have let his or her prisoner go and try to just survive. Not Ward! He believes in the badge he’s wearing, and he’s going to do his duty no matter what!
The other main person in this story is wily thief Lucinda, a scheming burglary suspect. She can’t believe Ward is actually not running for the hills! After all, was what she did really so bad that he has to endanger both of their lives this way?
The two encounter gangs trying to take advantage of this alien invasion and the aliens themselves! Things go from bad to worse as they weave through uncertain dangers.
Faerber does a great job of making the main characters believable, helping us get to know them as they react to a life-threatening situation. How they work with each other and the others around them is very telling, and we come to care about them very quickly! Faerber puts the “care” in character!
He also keeps the plot moving and shifting, with unexpected turns and surprises meeting us pretty often from page to page. When one of the main characters is injured, we pull for that person… even when aliens attack!
‘MOVING’ ART!
An important part of relating to the characters is how they look. Greenwood’s art is particularly good when dealing with the faces of the people, showing their expressions rather than having to rely on dialogue so much. There are several sequences when the silent moments between characters are very moving solely because of the strong art.
The action sequences, including the massive explosions at times, really made my teeth rattle! They set up those important dramatic experiences, so very well done!
BOTTOM LINE: Aliens, Cops, & Thieves… Oh, My!
This book is an interesting blend of several kinds of story including an action tale, a sci-fi invasion, and a character-oriented mix up. It’s quite an effective working of this, and I think it will do well even from a great publisher that isn’t as well known as DC or Marvel.
Not to spoil anything, but the ending is also very strong. Let’s just say that what we NEED to get resolved takes place, but not all loose threads are taken care of. This just screams feature film or TV movie to me!
If you’re looking for a character-oriented, fast-action story, I recommend this graphic novel very strongly!
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Area 510
If you’re looking for a character-oriented, fast-action story, I recommend this graphic novel very strongly!
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Wayne Hall creates the Wayne's Comics Podcast. He’s interviewed Scott Snyder, Greg Capullo, John Layman, Kyle Higgins, Phil Hester, Jimmy Palmiotti & Justin Gray, David Petersen, Christos Gage, Mike Grell, and Matt Kindt. On this site each week, he writes his "Comics Portal" column (general comics comments and previews) and reviews comics.