Lewis and Clark, pioneer explorers of the American Frontier on a mission of discovery to map the great uncharted lands of America - and hunt monsters? Yes, in a similar vein to Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, writer Chris Dingess takes the famous explorers and re-imagines their journey as part geographical survey and part clandestine mission to eliminate a mysterious threat to the burgeoning United States. Manifest Destiny is Dingess' first comic - his background is TV writing on shows like Being Human and Medium - and it's not bad for a first comic, especially as it's also a first issue which are notoriously hard to get right. There's a lot of cursive-lettered scene-setting from Lewis' journal as he gives us the setup of the expedition, the makeup of the crew, their mission and side-mission, and his impressions of the journey so far. It's a lot to get through and, with its lack of style and pacing, wasn't all that interesting to read - Lewis is a competent narrator but not a charismatic one whose observations are quite pedestrian. I don't know much about the real Lewis and Clark, but the characters presented here are standard archetypes - Lewis is the brains, Clark is the brawn. That's made very clear from the opening scene where Clark manfully shoots a bird at a distance with one shot and Lewis goes belowdecks to write in his journal and sketch the bird. They're also generically handsome leading men while the bad guy is of course short, ugly - Gollum-like even - and spends his spare time staring at a knife. Right away you could tell he was going to disrupt the mission and of course he does - it's all too predictable. I think the storyline has potential but the way it's presented and the generic cast we're introduced to don't do this comic any favours. But there is plenty to like about Manifest Destiny #1 such as Matthew Roberts' artwork which is beautiful. The first page shows the three ships in Lewis and Clark's group, small as they sail down a glorious blue river, surrounded by miles and miles of undeveloped land, rocky outcrops and green hills stretching to the horizon while a majestic bird flies overhead. Then we get into the weird stuff which is where Roberts shines - the giant plant arch is both wonderfully crafted and menacing at the same time, like Kubrick's monolith from 2001. There's also an amazing skull flower that looks like it could plausibly exist in our world - Roberts' artwork is that convincing - and then we get the creature's design at the end which is quite brilliant. Owen Gieni's colours really help too, using striking, bold colours to bring the page to life, giving us the wide blue sky and verdant greens of unspoilt nature. While I found Dingess' script lacking in places, I had no issues whatsoever with Roberts' art.
This is a pretty good first issue though - the storyline is intriguing, and there's different angles being worked at the same time. On the one hand there's a potential mutiny - which, all alone in the wilderness, could be fatal to the success of the mission - alongside a land unlike anything you'd expect to see, with who knows what other dangers ahead. And Dingess does work in some clever details into the script to keep the reader engaged in speculating where the story is headed, like everyone on the crew not having any living family members. Manifest Destiny #1 has a good storyline that has the potential to become great if it's developed well, and some absolutely fantastic artwork. Like a lot of first issues, it's a bit slow as we're introduced to the world of the comic, but by the end of the first issue things are set up and, coupled with the dynamic finale, the story looks ready to take off in issue #2. This is definitely worth a look for comics readers looking for something a bit different from masks and capes and who enjoy a bit of fantasy and history mixed together.
Published by Image, Manifest Destiny #1 by Chris Dingess and Matthew Roberts is out now