Get Your Damn Dirty Hands On Planet Of The Apes: The Time Of Man #1

Planet of the Apes lives on in this new oversized one-shot featuring stories from different times within the franchise and in both the new and old versions. All of them center on the terrifying beast known as man and how apes work with it. It would have been easy to tell a bunch of tales centering on the original film or Charlton Heston’s character. Instead, we get a pretty wide berth in telling unique stories that fill in the gaps and flesh out some characters within the mythos.

That is perhaps best shown in the first story, “Armando’s Tale” from writer David F. Walker, artist George Schall, and letterer Ed Dukeshire. It focuses on Armando, the circus owner from Conquest of the Planet of the Apes played by Ricardo Montalban, showing what his life was like after he took in the infant Caesar. This is a heartfelt tale of a man who risked everything to do what was right. If anyone found out that Caesar could talk, he would have been arrested, if not killed.
This story takes place over years as Caesar grows up and Armando ages. Although it’s about a man and an ape, it’s very much like a father and son. Armando tries to do what’s best for Caesar in a world that will fear him. There are some heartbreaking moments as the pair face monumental adversity and struggle to overcome it. Schall’s artwork brings out the raw emotion in both characters.

“Armando’s Tale” sets a high bar right out of the gate and it’s matched with the rest of the anthology. “Man’s Best Friend” from writer Dan Abnett, artist Carlos Magno, colorist Gabriel Cassata, and letterer Ed Dukeshire is told mostly presented in omniscient narration, showing a family of apes that take in a mute human named Bolo as a pet. You could replace the apes with people and the human with a dog and it would be a similar story. This story will resonate with anyone that’s ever had a pet growing up.
Magno’s artwork certainly doesn’t hurt either. He’s done a number of Planet of the Apes comics and this one is of similar high quality. The apes look like those seen in the original franchise and show more emotion than the masks seen in the films ever could. This is a real family dealing with real issues. They just happen to be apes.

Closing out The Time of Man is “Mountain” from writer Phillip Kennedy Johnson, artist Morgan Beem, and letterer Ed Dukeshire. This one is from the human’s point of view and comes from the latest cinematic incarnation of the series. It features a group of people struggling to survive in the wilderness and they suddenly encounter an ape. This creature represents everything they’ve lost in the world, so it brings up a lot of emotions. How they handle them is what makes this such a gripping tale.

Planet of the Apes is a franchise that has stood the test of time and for good reason. The stories from this universe serve as an allegory for incredibly relevant themes from decades ago and into today. This collection is a testament to that and it’s a must read for any fans of the films, new or old.
Planet of the Apes: The Time of Man #1 from Boom! Studios is currently available at your local comic shop and digitally through ComiXology and Amazon Kindle.