The price point of this issue is undoubtedly to bring individuals in to this new story. This issue is the first of eight, and starts off fairly slowly. Individuals are introduced to a disaffected child in a Donnie Darko type of vein, who seems to be ignored or abused at every corner by parents, bullies, and the entirety of the outside world. The story begins to really take a turn when Joe goes back to eir room and seems to fall asleep.
Where it is not completely understood, it seems as if Joe has been brought into the world of eir toys, where one can see a Batman, Robin, fake Optimus Prime, and other hot-ticket items from years past. The art styling here does well in showing the grittiness of the world while still allowing for a distinction for the other world that Joe falls into. For $1, there is no way that individuals should not pick up this title. However, I’d like to see more progression as the issues continue – there may just be a little too slow of a pace taken this go around.
Rating: 6.4/10
Joe The Barbarian #1 / $1 / Vertigo (DC Comics) / http://www.vertigocomics.com
