Advance Review: Fighting A Different Kind Of Monster In `TerrorWar’ #1

Imagine your worst fears come to life. Snakes. Zombies. Vampires. A big smiling frog snatched from a kids show.

Terror doesn’t judge. It just scares you to death. In the case of the new series TerrorWar, once the monster touches you, it burns you with a corrosive acid.

Fortunately for the residents of futuristic Blue City, have Muhammad Cho and other terrorfighters – specially-gifted contractors who can hurt the terrors with so-called brain bullets. Cho doesn’t know the origins of these fatal terrors; his team just exists to stomp them out. While they are performing a much-needed public service, it barely pays the bills – as evidenced by Cho’s shoddy living arrangements.

While it may mean a harder life for our protagonist, Cho’s home in a rough neighborhood gives readers more to feast their eyes upon. And a feast is what the art team of penciler Dave Acosta, inker Jay Leisten and colorist Walter Pereyra deliver to us.

From the first page, it’s clear that while Blue City may be the last livable place on Earth, it’s a dark, dystopian existence. Large panels and plenty of full pages show off a world pulled from the likes of Blade Runner and 12 Monkeys.

Acosta’s depictions of Cho need little explanatory text. It’s clear he’s feeling overwhelming despair throughout this initial issue. It doesn’t help that he has the guts of the latest terror all over him while he’s taking a train to work.

Writer Saladin Ahmed has crafted this intriguing tale, which originated his Copper Bottle website. The book is now in print form, and Ahmed wants it to have a life beyond the first few chapters his creative team published online last year. Based on the initial chapter, it deserves more exposure and a broader audience.

TerrorWar #1 will be available for purchase on April 19, 2023.