‘Lazarus: Fallen’ — Greg Rucka And Michael Lark Return To The World Of Lazarus With A Final Series

by Olly MacNamee

Writer Greg Rucka (The Old Guard) and artist Michael Lark, returning to the neo-feudalist world of Lazarus with a final miniseries, Lazarus: Fallen along with colourist Santi Arcas, letterer Ariana Maher, editor Alejandro Arbona, and graphic designers Eric Trautmann and Richard Howe.

“The Lazarus series follows Forever Carlyle, an unkillable, genetically-engineered soldier, controlled by the mechanisms of her father, Malcolm Carlyle. Malcolm is the patriarch of one of the powerful Families that rose to rule the world after an economic-driven apocalypse. The Families now own everything and everyone; in this neo-feudalist order, you are either of value to the Families and made a Serf, or you are irrelevant, disposable labor, called Waste.

But the Families are driven by greed, and in their unending pursuit of more and more, each created a Lazarus—a man or woman created and trained to be the loyal instrument of their Family’s will. Forever Carlyle is the Lazarus of the Carlyle Family, raised to absolutely believe in her duty to her family, and with an unquestioning loyalty to her father. That time is over, and now Forever—with the aid of her younger sister and next iteration of the Carlyle Lazarus, Infinity—means to destroy the world her father created.”

Rucka gives a quick recap on what’s come before:

“Michael and I started Lazarus back in 2013, and while we knew we were telling a story that was a distorted reflection of our world, I don’t think either of us imagined how less distorted that vision would become. for all the talk about the world-building, about the vision of the future—or arguably, prescience of the present—Lazarus has remained, at its heart, about Forever’s journey. We’re finally getting to the resolution of it—the ending that we’ve been working on from the start. There’s so much I’m excited about sharing with this final run. There are things that I think will surprise some readers—some twists that they, perhaps, didn’t see coming. I know that it’s been a long wait for these final issues, and I’m grateful for the patience our audience has shown. We’ve got the most amazing fans, and that is both humbling and gratifying.”

Lark added:

“I’m very happy to get Lazarus back into readers’ hands. Greg has given me so much to explore with the characters and storytelling, and I’m really excited about the work I’ve been doing on the new issues. I think it is some of the best work I’ve ever done, and I hope readers feel the same.”

Rucka concluded:

“I love working with Michae. He fits my sensibilities for storytelling so effortlessly, and his character work is never anything less than superb. He always delivers on the action, but it’s in the quiet scenes, in the emotional beats, that I think he shines brightest—and it’s in those moments that the series lives and breathes. This is unquestionably the best work of Michael’s career thus far, and that is genuinely saying something.”