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Indie comic Aberrant is '24 with superheroes': Exclusive first look at Season 2
Action Lab Comics' mature imprint, Action Lab Danger Zone, has been a corner of the indie comics scene worth keeping an eye on, with genre-bending hits such as the comic-strip noir thriller Spencer and Locke, the Die Hard-at-a-wedding actioner Going to the Chapel, and the upcoming superhero Death Wish story, Banjax.
Aberrant, however, has the potential to be the biggest of them all. It follows the story of David Colbrenner, a U.S. Army Special Operations Commander who loses his entire unit to a superhuman attack. Colbrenner suspects the eccentric billionaire and former superhero Lance Cordrey is the man responsible, and launches a one-man war against him.
Aberrant was originally pitched to Action Lab Danger Zone comics as two five-issue arcs to tell the story. Yet, on the strength of its first volume, Season 1, Aberrant is now being developed into a television series, as well. Creator and writer Rylend Grant is putting the finishing touches on Aberrant Season 2, which begins with Issue #1, on sale tomorrow, April 24, and will have seeds of new conflicts and fits of intrigue that could sprout into more story.
Grant likens the concept of Aberrant to “24 with superheroes,” name-checking the hit Fox series about counterterrorism — something that a friend coined to him when they were discussing Aberrant on a podcast. On the eve of the release of the second story arc, SYFY WIRE has some exclusive preview pages from the comic's new storyline and a variant cover reveal, all drawn by Davi Leon Dias with colors by Iwan Joko Triyono and letters by HdE.
Grant said that the key to selling a comic series to a publisher is to pitch them a single, clean four or five-issue arc that is set in a world that will support a dozen or more four or five-issue arcs. This approach primed Aberrant for TV as well, as Hollywood seeks out those rare properties that can hold an audience's attention for five-to-seven seasons.
Aberrant Season 2 #1 begins with David Colbrenner realizing that Cordrey was a patsy, and David’s men were actually killed as part of a vast government/military conspiracy.
"If David is going to peel back the layers of said conspiracy, he’s going to need Cordrey’s help," Grant revealed. Colbrenner has recently noticed he too has superpowers emerging and must weigh the trustworthiness of his source's intel on Cordrey.
"Season 2 ultimately plays like an edgy ‘80s buddy cop movie. If you look at it under a microscope, you’ll definitely spot some of that Lethal Weapon, 48 Hours, and Beverly Hills Cop DNA." Blended with the Michael Clayton military conspiracy vibe still in the air, Aberrant continues to build off of the first volume, and readers can envision how the television series will begin to take form.
"David and Cordrey hate each other with an unrivaled passion, but they kind of need each other, too," he added. "They are forced to walk through these next five issues hand-in-sweaty-hand. It’s almost never pretty, but it’s almost always wicked fun."
Check out SYFY WIRE's exclusive five-page reveal (pages 3, 4, 9, 17 and 18) of Aberrant Season 2 #1 below and let us know what you think.
