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Aug 28, 2009 Web Exclusive By Jeremy Nisen

The Surrogates: Flesh and Bone is a prequel to 2006’s The Surrogates, the movie version of which, starring Bruce Willis, will soon hit theaters near you. It revisits a sci-fi world where it’s possible to live life almost completely remotely, via highly advanced robotic avatars, aka “surrogates.”

In the original story, “surries” are ubiquitous, and the proliferation of their use has had astounding impacts on crime, ethics, policing, labor, and life in general. Flesh and Bone takes the audience back to when surrogates were mostly relegated to a privileged few.

While Flesh and Bone is definitely better suited to those who have read the main story, it’s an extremely strong book in and of itself. Some of the character development of The Prophet, a social dissident and perhaps a villain of the first book, and officer, later detective, Harvey Greer, certainly will be lost if Flesh and Bone is a reader’s first experience with the world. But anyone picking it up will still get a murder mystery, complicated by the fact that the crime was committed via surrogate, and a very powerful citizen is using his considerable influence to stop the investigation in its tracks.

Both volumes of Robert Vendetti’s The Surrogates are sci-fi done exactly right, with interesting technological extrapolations serving as a backdrop for what is ultimately an action-packed, character-driven drama with noir-ish touches. Brett Weldele, the artist and colorist, sets the scene perfectly, with moody, distinct art that makes plain the dark underbelly of a society trying to reconcile scientific advancement. Script and art meshing beautifully into story, Flesh and Bone is sure to be counted among the best graphic novels of the year. (www.topshelfcomix.com)

Author rating: 8/10