In a world where being a clone is considered a crime against nature, a dedicated police force has been established to track down these people. Your Major Spoilers review of Skin Police #1, awaits!

SKIN POLICE #1

Writer: Jordan Thomas
Artist: Daniel Gete
Colorist: Jason Wordie
Letterer: Jeff Powell
Publisher: Oni Press
Cover Price: $4.99
Release Date: October 2nd, 2024

Previously in Skin Police: In the future, a fertility crisis has created a black market for cloned material and people. These clones, called “dupes,” are considered crimes against nature. They have a tendency to “pop” or suffer from murderous psychic breaks, so a police force has been created to track them down and capture them.

ANOTHER DAY ON THE JOB

Skin Police #1 starts with a man boarding an airplane and taking his seat. When anxiety hits him, he goes to the bathroom to clear his head. When he exits, the entire plane has been transformed into a boat full of demons. A pair of officers are alerted to a Dupe popping on the plane and go to take care of him. The next day, Agent Eckis, the one from the airplane, heads to his headquarters. Elsewhere, a woman overhears the woman she lives with, selling her out as a possible Dupe. Eckis is then introduced to his new partner, and they set out to follow up on an investigation. Along the way, he explains some of the ins and outs of the job and the morally grey area that it exists in. The woman who was sold out makes a break for it, which begins a chase through the city. Eckis and his partner interview the employer of a suspected Dupe, and things go south.

COMICALLY BLEAK

Skin Police #1 comes off as the love child between Children of Men, Judge Dredd, and Blade Runner, without any of the gravitas, clever satire, or intrigue. There’s an attempt to make the act of hunting down clones a morally vague premise, but as the issue goes on and more is revealed about the Skin Police practices, the world becomes blacker and whiter and, in turn, far less interesting. As for the plotline, it’s a typical police procedural. A hardened vet and the more flexible rookie are thrown into an investigation that is supposed to open their eyes to the realities of their society. So far, it has played out pretty much exactly as you’d expect. This isn’t helped by the distinct lack of personality of the main characters. Agent Eckis’ sole personality trait seems to be being a good cop; the rookie seems to be there only to throw questions at him, and everyone else in the issue barely has any lines or opportunity to express their personality. A last-minute cliffhanger at the end does suggest that there is something to build on, but even within this issue, it doesn’t have much of an impact.

BRUTALITY IN BRIGHT COLORS

Skin Police #1 isn’t an overtly violent comic, but there’s a brutality to the violence that is present. So, the choice to have the world be full of soft pastel colors and for most of the action to take place in bright settings is an interesting one. It creates a nice juxtaposition between the subject matter and the world, even though when looked at through a more metaphoric lens, it borders on being another element that lacks nuance.

BOTTOM LINE: STRUGGLES TO JUSTIFY ITSELF

Skin Police #1 lacks any sort of panache that would set it apart from all the other properties it seems to have pulled from. A paint by numbers plot with an uninteresting collection of characters, set in a world that seems to be actively trying to get rid of its own depth, just does not make for an interesting read. Visually, while what it’s doing narratively isn’t exactly unique, its well done and the separation between the bright and happy look of the world and the dark nature that it seems to be built on provides an ounce of depth that the plot doesn’t have. 2 out of 5 stars.

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Skin Police #1

50%

50%

Pass On This One

Unless you’re desperate for another dystopian police state science fiction story, there just isn’t much here to justify picking up this issue.

• Writing

  3
• Art

  6
• Coloring

  6
• User Ratings (0 Votes)
  0