By Stuart Moore & Gus Storms

How can Image keep putting out such incredible new books with such extreme consistency? However they do it, it’s been done again. Stuart Moore and newcomer Gus Storms have an absolute winner on their hands with EGOs. Although the title is short for Earth/Galactic Operatives, it seems to work on multiple levels given some of the characters we met in issue #1.

The story follows leader of the titular former super team, Deuce, as he rebuilds a new team in order to defend the galaxy from what appears to be a sentient black hole. Wild concept right there, but there is so much more going on in EGOs #1. First of all, the pacing and overall organization of this book was nothing short of masterful. The writing itself has a voice that feels fresh and the narration in particular is incredibly engaging. It is hilarious and quite surprising to eventually find out who the narrator is, but this is really one of the best aspects of the first installment to this great new series. The narration feels natural and the relatively colloquial tone employed manages to make the book even more fun; for most of the issue it’s as if the narrator is actually carrying on a conversation with the reader while still being expertly crafted with some real depth throughout. While the writing itself feels perfect, the characters that Stuart Moore introduced in issue #1 were all very interesting with their own intrigues and quirks. The story thus far feels clear, but it still maintains a veil of mystery around many of the characters that is quite exciting!

Also, Stuart Moore needs to go back where he found Gus Storms and get more like him. Like the story, the artwork in EGOs #1 feels fresh with tons of vibrancy. The illustrations provided by Storms feel vaguely reminiscent of the ever-awesome Nick Pitarra, but still maintain their own unique overall appearance. There’s something very ‘full’ about the visuals that is difficult to describe, but the somewhat cartoony yet well-detailed art really works for this book. Some of the visuals have an elegant simplicity that conveys a ton of charm and personality. This is further enhanced by Gus Storms’ magnificent colors which really emphasize the detail. From the excellent environments to the interesting characters, the color work brings a lot of added vibrancy and life to each panel.

Image has been on a roll for a long time now and there are no signs of slowing. Moore and Storms tear right out of the gate to bring us a perfect opening issue to EGOs. Let’s hope everybody had this one on their pre-order list for the month because if there is any justice for terrific artistic talent, this one will sell out quick! Get to your shop now if you haven’t already and pick up EGOs #1. It has a fantastic story delivered through pitch-perfect writing and magnificent artwork from a great new industry talent.