The world is split between landfills swamped with consumer waste and small protected domes of utopia. Check out the urban legend that comes to life in Junk Rabbit #1 by Image Comics!
JUNK RABBIT #1
Writer: Jimmie Robinson
Artist: Jimmie Robinson
Colorist: Jimmie Robinson
Letterer: Jimmie Robinson
Editor: Allison O’Toole
Publisher: Image Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: April 5th, 2023
Previously in Junk Rabbit: Check out a new comic featuring a dystopian world overrun with trash. There are places of refuge called domes, but some people live within the trash piles, called the Sink, foraging for scraps.
WHAT YOU DO FOR A FOLLOW
Junk Rabbit #1 starts with an exposition of the setting and then the murder of Donald Masters called ““Steeper.”” When exploring the landfills, he 1) made a lot of noise and 2) was murdered. His father, Richard Masters, hires Detective Chela Omina to investigate the case. Richard doesn’t seem upset about his son’s death but puts on a show for the news. He also threatens the Detective and seems to abuse his power and riches. Chela shows him a video feed where they see the rabbit silhouette right before his death. Richard orders Chela to keep this secret and to hire people to look for them.
The point-of-view changes to Sylv, a forager within the Sink. Her sister, Ash, works with her to run a storefront from stuff they find within the trash piles. Ash is dating Lance, who seems to be an inventor of sorts. After Ash and Lance show affection, Sylv becomes sick. It is then revealed that Sylv has a crush on Lance but didn’t let her feelings known before Lance started to date Ash. Sylv observes Detective Chela asking the locals questions with the police. However, the police go too far and kill a civilian for worshipping the Junk Rabbit but not knowing who or what it is. After the bullet is fired, the Junk Rabbit appears as a person wearing a metal rabbit face and many sharp objects as weapons.
META-COMMENTARY
When I opened the first page, I was overwhelmed by the amount of text on the page. The exposition dump initially took me out of the narrative. By the time the murder happened, I wasn’t really invested. The setting explanation made me miss details within those initial pages that I had to catch in my future read-throughs. For example, there is a large truck with an Amazon logo. I was stuck on the written descriptors of consumerism, and I missed the detail and commentary on modern-day. Because of this, Jimmie Robinson had to earn back my trust in the plot by introducing the major characters and the story. And as I read about Richard and these kids, my interest rekindled. This made my second read-through much more enjoyable, but not everyone will give this book a second chance if they didn’t enjoy it in the first place.
The art is also immaculate. You can stare at and try to decipher many details here. And this busyness on the page emulates the idea of trash worlds. In contrast, the dome uses a different color palette but also feels busy with buildings and media. But that is an ordered chaos. The art supplements the story, and I will enjoy the use of color and details in future issues.
BOTTOM LINE: IT COULD BE GREAT
Junk Rabbit #1 has a ton of potential to be a great series, and after multiple reads, I am on board. But it took a fair amount of effort to get to that point. That isn’t exactly a bad thing, but it will be a turn-off for some readers. However, Junk Rabbit #1 is a 4.5 out of 5 stars, and I am sure to pick up the next issue now that the exposition section has passed.
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Junk Rabbit #1
Junk Rabbit #1 has a ton of exposition to understand the setting, but once you make it past that, you have an engaging premise with a ton of promise.
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Christopher Rondeau is a storyteller based in Tulsa, OK. Finding himself with little work, he ended up creating a job as a Game Master full time on the internet. Chris spends most of his days reading everything he can, writing bad fiction, and watching old Digimon cartoons with his daughter. Sometimes you can find him Dungeon Mastering a podcast or streaming on twitch. Recently, he has completed his Master's degree with a focus on collaborative storytelling. Find out more at https://rondeaucreator.com