IGN can exclusively reveal Image Comics' latest new project, an epic space opera called Free Planet. Image is billing the series as a mash-up of East Meets West and Dune, making this one comic that should be on every sci-fi lover's radar.
Check out the slideshow gallery below for an exclusive first look at Free Planet #1:
Free Planet is written by Aubrey Sitterson (No One Left to Fight) and illustrated by Jed Dougherty (Savage Hearts). The first issue features covers by Dougherty and Fico Ossio. Here's Image's official description of the series:
The first completely free planet in human history has won its independence. Now, a group of revolutionary heroes must defend the planet’s unique energy source from a pair of hostile intergalactic powers while determining what complete freedom actually entails. AUBREY SITTERSON (No One Left to Fight, The Comic Book Story of Professional Wrestling) and JED DOUGHERTY (Savage Hearts, Worlds’ Finest) blend the intricate future history of EAST OF WEST with the emotional space opera stylings of SAGA in a story about freedom and the sacrifices it demands.
"Free Planet is the shape of comics to come, Jed and my effort to elevate our craft and chosen medium with a truly literary comic, its rich complexity presented visually," Sitterson tells IGN. "Whether its intense military action, intricate geopolitical machinations, or heart-rending soap opera, every page of Free Planet contains an overwhelming amount of visual information; we're giving you your money's worth, with a book meant to be read slowly, again and again. It's a complex rumination on what everyone – no matter where they fall on the political spectrum – truly wants: Freedom. In light of this, it's fitting that Free Planet has found a home at Image Comics, a publisher founded for the express purpose of affording comics creators the freedom to make their best, most personal works, completely unfettered."
"Aubrey and I have collaborated on several comics with fantasy and comedic tones," Dougherty adds. "Free Planet is our foray into a more serious work: An internally conflicted force of revolutionaries defending their planet’s resources from the depredations of interstellar powers. In keeping with the rich, involved script, I’ve modified my artwork with grittier tonal rendering as well as experiments with page layouts and graphical elements. In the course of drawing this book, the wide cast of characters has come alive for me as they battle on land and in space, as they rebuild a society from the wreckage of revolution, and as they seek out vengeance, justice and even love."
Free Planet #1 will be released on Wednesday, May 7.
For more on what's happening in the comic book world, check out what to expect from Marvel in 2025 and what to expect from DC in 2025.
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