Review: Ministry of Compliance #1

New from IDW Publishing

From IDW Publishing is the beginning of a new world and universe-spanning story - Ministry of Compliance #1. Check out my thoughts on this new series out now!

Academy Award–winning filmmaker and critically acclaimed comic book writer John Ridley (The Other History of the DC Universe, I Am Batman) delivers a bold, new vision of science fiction with MINISTRY OF COMPLIANCE. Thirty-seven years ago, Earth was secretly invaded by an alien force known as the Devolution, and they have been shaping the direction humanity has been going in ever since to prepare us to be assimilated into their empire. The Devolution has thirteen ministries, each responsible for manipulating a different aspect of human life. The Ministry of Compliance, the most feared of all the ministries, led by the fierce Avigail Senna, makes sure all the ministries stay in line and remain focused on the Devolution’s mission. As it appears the Ministry’s mission is on the verge of being completed and Earth will be assimilated, things begin to go terribly wrong, and a conspiracy among the ministries breaks out that Avigail must deal with head-on. The beginning of comics’ next sci-fi epic in this oversized debut issue from John Ridley and acclaimed artist Stefano Rafael (The Joker, GCPD: The Blue Wall)!

by John Ridley (Author), Stefano Raffaele (Artist)

This is an incredibly deep dive into this world. Aliens are here, and they are working on taking over our planet. They have been here for some time, integrating and influencing the world as we know it.

Beyond that, there are schemes behind the schemes, and now I don’t trust anyone in this book!

There is a good look at the different areas of the alien invasion and the reasons behind it. It is pretty clever how integrated they are, but you can also see how the human world is rubbing off on them. They have been there a long time, which shows how some of them are acting.

There is the Ministry of Compliance, which seems to be more of the believers. These zealots seem to act as the enforcers so that the others all ‘act true’. Even so, there is a degree that you are rooting for them, and that makes this story even more interesting. For those who were fans of the X-Files, or perhaps Dark Skies, you will enjoy this, with a good cross between action and politics.

The art mixes it up well; there are some interesting locations (even London), and we get some brilliant action scenes. The blood and gore is there, but this works out well with the story. This story has some dark tones, but it is in the shadows.

This is a heavy first issue, introducing a lot, but it pulls you in and has introduces the characters well and gets you ready for what is to come.

Get it at Forbidden Planet: