Review: ‘Concrete: Stars Over Sand’ #1 Is Worth The Wait

It might be World Cup fever elsewhere in the world, but this review only had one thing on their mind: the release of the first issue of Concrete: Stars Over Sand #1 by the criminally neglected Paul Chadwick.

Apparently, this is something that’s been gestating in Chadwick’s mind since the 1990s(!). And coming after Concrete’s protracted absence from the comic store racks for decades (!), Stars Over Sand will probably be the last such miniseries. At least as a comics story — the creator has mentioned the idea of writing prose novels featuring his characters.

Back in 2021, video game holding company Embracer Group bought Dark Horse. In March of this year (2026), Mike Richardson, longtime CEO and founder of Dark Horse, was let go. What did this mean for Concrete, Dark Horse’s flagship title? None of us really knew and longtime fans feared that the much delayed miniseries wouldn’t be released after all. So, after years of anticipation, I trudged to a comic shop and was overjoyed to purchase the new issue. Not only was it delivered, it delivers!

The contents did not disappoint. Though Chadwick’s brush line is thicker with age, and perhaps he doesn’t invest quite as much detail as he once did, these pages are lush, and filled with labour and love. It felt like I was reading a Concrete comic from decades ago. That’s probably because he drew some of these pages back then. They have the more concentrated storytelling, panels, and introspective writing his fans admire. There are the fantastical and philosophical musings. He even writes in the third person omniscient voice, something I haven’t seen for quite a while in comics. Fans of Moebius will see the French master’s influence on this issue.

 

To bring the novice reader up to speed, Concrete is a human (Ron Lithgow) whose brain was transplanted into an alien “Concrete” body. The aliens responsible for the procedure subsequently left Earth, leaving Concrete isolated in his rocky shell but endowed with superhuman abilities. Many early Concrete stories involved ecological concerns and natural exploration, adventures that highlighted human conundrums and relationships much more than they dealt with sci-fi themes. These were human stories, well researched, crafted, and uniquely realistic, reflecting the social political world we live in. Consequently, the last limited series — The Human Dilemma — tackled overpopulation (Concrete becomes a mouthpiece for a billionaire urging people not to have kids), ending in an ironic twist: the character finally forged a romantic relationship with Maureen, the scientist assigned by the government to study him, and this biochemically activated Concrete’s body to produce a Concrete ‘baby.’ He effectively became pregnant and gave birth.

 

Stars Over Sands finds Concrete in the Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado. He’s with Maureen and their friend/confederate Larry — as well as the unconscious body of Concrete’s child, so not much time after The Human Dilemma has passed. Larry and Maureen don’t look much older than they did in the ’90s, so it’s hard to tell exactly how many years have passed since Concrete’s debut in the ’80s. I guess we’re dealing with some sort of Marvel-esque passage of time here (no mentions of current world figures or social media, etc.). The title character is once again preparing for a speech, worrying about costs, and in a downbeat mood about himself and his condition. To gain inspiration for the speech, he ventures into the dunes to wrap himself in solitude. That’s where tragedy strikes. The drama at the end of the issue is strong, proving Chadwick’s storytelling chops and reaffirming both his nuanced character work and ability to write.

 

Though the artwork doesn’t have the intricate design work of some of the earlier projects, there are still plenty of visual elements to ponder over: cutaways, repetitive motifs that rhythmically play with time, and written text placed purposefully to carry your eye over the design of the page. You even get the wonderful details (almost like footnotes) indicating scientific knowledge about flora and fauna. Perhaps the only thing that truly is different from the older work is the glossiness of the paper and colours, a result of modern printing practices. Best of all, the issue concludes with a rich, thoughtful editorial by Chadwick (the ‘ol Author’s Forum) giving you insights to his thoughts and musings connected to this project. I couldn’t sum it up better than he does so I’ll end with a photo of that column. I’m very much looking forward to the new installment! If you haven’t read the older stuff, go find an old collection like Depths, Heights, or the collected short stories. You won’t be disappointed; it’s some of the most intelligent stuff ever produced in comics.