Narco #1 is written by Doug Wagner and published by Image Comics. Artwork is by Daniel Hillyard, colours by Dave Stewart and letters by Ed Dukeshire. Main cover art (left) is by Daniel Hillyard.
Narco #1 is available from today, in comic book stores and on digital platforms where all good comic books are sold. Grab your physical copy from Forbidden Planet or digitally from Amazon Comixology UK.
Synopsis
Marcus Wesphal has a rare form of narcolepsy— when he gets excited, he passes out. He’s adapted: homebound life, a harmless infatuation with the girl next door. But when he witnesses her murder and collapses, he becomes suspect #1. Now, he must leave his apartment to pursue a killer.
Review
For a long time Image Comics have been my go-to publisher for bold, high-concept stories that aren’t shackled by the usual restraints of existing IP. The work Image consistently puts out there is, in a word, fresh.
Mini-series Narco, by writer Doug Wagner and artist Daniel Hillyard, seems like it’s on track to meet that standard. This first issue is essentially the 22 page elevator pitch for an extremely intriguing concept.
Marcus, a teenage conspiracy theorist suffering from narcolepsy, is about to go on a date with Jess, the girl of his dreams. However, he passes out at the worst possible time – the moment of her murder.
If you’re anything like me, that synopsis would’ve prompted a raised eyebrow or two. God knows I’m a sucker for a protagonist with an unusual handicap, especially when this handicap is weaved so thoroughly into the main narrative conceit.
Like Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window, Narco works so well as a springboard for potential drama and tension because our main character is at a significant disadvantage, and ill-equipped to tackle the kind of obstacles thrown at him in a high-stakes adventure.
In Rear Window we had a wheelchair-bound photographer taking snapshots of a potential murderer, knowing that he’d be helpless if discovered. Similarly, Narco presents us with a young man who faints at the slightest whiff of stress, and then proceeds to put him in one of the most stressful situations anyone can imagine: the investigation of – and potential implication in – a violent murder.
Setting the story up in this way ensures that every scenario – even one as standard as preparing for a date – has the foundation for tension. When simply cycling to school has you monitoring your heartbeat, in case you find yourself waking up in a ditch, you can see how a life-and-death scenario could become catnip for thriller lovers.
The idea of Marcus being unable to stay conscious at exciting moments, yet also being obsessed with serial killers, is a subtle stroke of genius, revealing much about his character without having him say it outright. You can tell that years of having to keep his excitement in check has given him a craving for it – and conspiracy theories are his outlet.
But that’s enough about the concept. How’s the story itself?
I’d describe it as a diamond in the rough. Narco #1 feels very much like it’s setting up something unique, though it left me wishing we’d seen a bit more of the fallout of the murder before the dreaded “To Be Continued” reared its head.
Issue #1 clearly sets up the key premise, introduces the main cast of characters – including a very welcome possum – and hits us with our inciting incident before the fade to black (literally).
The characters themselves, aside from Marcus, are a little generic. They’re your archetypal group of high school friends from every teen movie you’ve ever seen. They’re not particularly stand-out as characters go, or very amusing, so they feel sort of like sentient plot devices to prop up Marcus’ story, rather than fleshed-out people to make his world feel lived in.
A lot of their dialogue feels forced and exposition laden. There was probably a more natural way to communicate the status quo of Marcus’ life without having his friends essentially turn to the reader and say “Marcus is the main character, don’t you know?”.
Hillyard provides some solid art, portraying Marcus’ blackouts in a very vivid, nausea-inducing way. As someone who recently had blood taken and got a little light-headed, I can confirm that his depiction is disturbingly accurate, with its reality-warping distortions and swirling black tendrils.
Marcus’ design evokes the life he leads, sporting the scruffy clothes of a self-proclaimed “trolling conspiracy nutjob”, with heavy bags under his eyes from a sleep schedule ravaged by spontaneous trips to dreamland.
There’s a particularly nice splash panel showing a near-birds eye view of Marcus’ apartment as he prepares for his date with Jess. You can feel the anxiety emanating from the page, and it’s both an efficient and visually arresting way of showing how emotionally invested Marcus is, making the conclusion to the issue that much worse (in a good way).
Verdict
Narco #1 kicks this mini-series off with a promising opening, confidently presenting a narrative concept that’s rich with potential. Hopefully we’ll see the whole cast of characters come into their own a bit more as the plot unfolds and the tension mounts.
⭐⭐⭐
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