Catching up with The Black Diamond

Not to long ago I was blown away by the first issue of AIT-Planetlar's comic The Black Diamond. Well after attending this years Comic Con I picked up issues Two and Three of the series, along with the preview issue "On Ramp".

In "On Ramp", we are introduced to the world of the the Black Diamond. Were starting the day with Doctor McLaughlin, as he wakes up without his wife Kate. Splashed in between McLaughlin's narration we have several action pages of two cars chasing each other on the Diamond. After the Doc gets going he wishes his neighbor a "good morning" in their own playful way, and he's off to the office. Unfortunately for his neighbor who's walking her dog, she is just in time for one of the two cars we saw earlier to go crashing through the barrier of the Diamond, and land directly on her... welcome to the world of the Black Diamond.

Issue Two: One More For The Road
This issue is not only my favorite issue thus far, but it's also the big reveal. The government wants the oil being supplied to the Black Diamond. You see there's One guy who owns all the oil, and he's on a hunting trip with a military rep. There conversation is rich with social commentary about what's happening in our world today. If it were a movie, I'd have a hard drive full of sound bytes from their conversation. In fact this issue is a lot of dialog and great art work. Kate, Doctor McLaughlin's kidnapped wife, shares the best conversation between herself and her kidnappers as they do a crossword puzzle. You can sum it up by saying it's about those random words you learn and never have another use for outside of crosswords and telling other people. Also how does Jon Proctor make women beautiful, sexy and intelligent with his pencils? Larry gives them personality and Jon makes them live up to it, making them a great team. The third act of the issue takes place in a diner off of the Diamond, and we're introduced to another sexy female lead. Each issue ends with a humorous back up story to add depth and history to the Diamond, and this issue is not exempt. The back story is basically a Pirate Radio show interviewing a Black Diamond Preacher. You'll find more social commentary and humor, in this short but good story, that wraps the issue up nicely.

Issue Three : The Bottle and the Throttle

If the last issue was a dialog issue, then this issue is an action issue. Remember that sexy female lead I barely mentioned before? Well she quit the diner and dumped the owner, her boyfriend, in the last issue. She also took with her a, "treasure" that the Ex wants back. And who would have just happened to pull up to the diner in the last issue? That's right the Doc Don. She jumps in the car and the two speed off, yes they exchanged dialog about it but that's not important. Great, great action pics of the cars and bikes chasing each other. The sexy hitch-hiker starts fire bombing the bikes and Ex's car, and boy howdy can Mr. Proctor draw some pretty fire! I don't really want to keep giving away a lot of the story at this point because that would take away from the fun of reading the issue. Just know that sexy-hitch-hiker and Don share some good dialog that makes the chase scene that much better. Kate also confronts her kidnappers on the ridiculousness of her being kidnapped, telling them that pretty much the government won't give a crap that they took her. She doesn't know how right she is. In the last pages the Army starts "cleaning" the Diamond with extreme force. Picture protesting in China, and you'll get the idea. Interesting enough, they're six pages of script for you to read. I myself, seeing different comic book writers and how they craft an issue since it's so different from writer to writer. The back story is... funny, and dark. That's all I'm going to say :)

After reading the first issue of this series, I have to say I'm hooked. In fact, why haven't you picked up a copy yet? You are literally missing out on one of the best comics being made right now! I can't literally can't wait for issue four to come out, and wait, desperately for more projects from Larry Young and Jon Proctor, but also AIT-Planet Lar as well. Larry also does a column for CBR, check it out and pick up an issue. With increased sales I wouldn't have to fight people to get an issue of the book.
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