Escape From New York #1

by Christopher Sebela, Diego Barreto & Marissa Louise

After launching a Big Trouble In Little China series earlier this year, BOOM! now continues another John Carpenter film with Escape From New York. The debut issue released this week picks up where the movie left off. Snake is now on the run from the government after the stunt he pulled with the President. Now it seems like the segregated state of Florida is the safest place for Snake to lay low.

Instead of falling into the route of rehashing the movie into a comic, writer Chris Sebela truly does just expand on the original film. Even though the series is called Escape From New York, by the end of this issue Snake is done and far away from the Big Apple. You could say that makes the title misleading, but it’s more about using the name for recognition. People might have been confused if it was called Escape From Florida. That said, Sebela perfectly captures Snake’s dour essence. Plissken is still that hard-edged badass who speaks more through his actions than his mouth. Sebela even held the tradition of giving Snake some temporary hanger-on allies. This is a prime example of how to write a comic sequel to a cult movie.

Visually, Escape From New York looked great. Artist Diego Barreto’s technique does capture that dark post-apocalyptic world that Snake inhabits. Barreto’s style also has a simple light-heartedness to it that doesn’t make Escape From New York feel too depressing. Another art style might have felt either too grim or too playful. Barreto’s balance makes Escape From New York much more universally accessible to all types of readers. Marissa Louise took a very subdued approach with her coloring in Escape From New York. She is able to keep the dark tones that were ever-present in the movie and still reflect that gloominess onto the page. Her colors set the mood for the story while keeping Escape From New York feeling authentic.

It is no easy task to take older cult classic movies and try to continue that story in a comic. Some are more successful than others. Especially when it’s a movie that’s over 20 years old, you have to worry if there is still a fan base out there. Escape From New York has started off on the right foot so far. This first issue got right into the story with no hand holding, but was still easy to follow. Readers who aren’t familiar with Snake Plissken might not get as much joy out of reading this issue. This is for fans who want more of Snake’s adventures while getting a bigger glimpse into the state of the world that Escape From New York takes place in.