A poignant tale of self discovery in amongst a galaxy unlike our own…
When I first started to read Emily & Laurence Alison and David Hitchcock’s sci-fi tale Out There, I was reminded of Dan Abnett’s phenomenal sci-fi tale “The Out”. Both sci-fi operas feature a strong female lead character who’s taken well and truly out of her comfort zone and thrust into a galaxy that’s packed full of weird and wonderful beings. While “The Out” soon took its story down the familiar route of galactic war, Out There takes us on a grand journey that’s full of adventure, mischief, and most importantly heart.
The narrative of Out There follows human being Lucy and her grandad, Len. Growing up on Earth life hasn’t been easy for Lucy. Pandemics, global climate change, and government corruption have made Lucy’s world quite a scary place. With a need for control, what’s left of humanity is governed by a group dubbed “the Palindrome” (two architects, a robotics expert, an aerospace engineer, an astronomer, and a psychiatrist) who get the ultimate say in what’s best for humanity. Confining everyone to spend their lives isolated within six-sided houses called ‘Hexahome’s’ life is pretty bleak for all but the privileged few.
However bleak this world is, hope grows from the tiniest of seeds and for Lucy, this comes from her grandfather Len. Throughout Len’s life, he’s wanted his granddaughter to escape this existence and to experience life “Out There”. Free from the oppression and strife caused by the Palindrome, Lucy can then discover her way in life and ultimately become the person she wants to be. It’s this simple premise that drives the duo out into the wider cosmos on their journey of discovery.
Keeping away from too many spoilers Out There is simply a book that you’ll read from cover to cover in one sitting. Laurence and Emily have created an extremely compelling story that takes on some heavy themes but keeps everything grounded within an all-ages comic book tale. There’s a lot of emphasis on young people’s struggles with mental health, feelings of isolation, and loss of self-worth in a world that seems to be cracking down on these once-social freedoms. It’s a hard-hitting story and as a father myself, it got me questioning my parenting style and gave a somewhat understandable insight into my own daughter’s current struggles with her mental health.
Is it social satire? Well, come the story's end there is a nice epilogue from Laurence which covers the why and how behind Out There’s creation. I quite enjoyed reading this as Laurence gives a lot of detail into young people’s struggles that haven’t been helped by 14 years of austerity measures, the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdowns, and now the so-called “cost of living crisis”. Laurence aptly describes this as an unstoppable tidal wave that no one seems to be able to stop. And without getting too political…he’s right.
Anyway, even with its themes, Lucy’s character and motivations are easy to get behind. The Alison’s craft an instantly relatable lead character who’s going to resonate with younger readers, while Len (and his many guises) takes on the parent role as protector, teacher, and ultimately a friend. Again, it’s something that takes inspiration from our own world and gives both characters that emotional connection.
David Hitchcock’s artwork is a superb example of how to make a story leap off the page. Each scene has plenty of activity with bustling alien backgrounds and gorgeous full-page vistas. Hitchcock also uses plenty of close-up perspectives that capture each character’s expressions and help convey the emotions within the script. Hitchcock then tackles colouring duties and brings a varied colour palette to his line work. There’s a great use of dull tones and heavy shadows that extenuate the atmosphere seen on Earth, to then crescendo into a vibrant, colourful delight as Lucy and Len go “Out There”.
And finally, let’s not forget Neil ‘Bhuna’ Roche whose lettering work brings both the script and artwork together.
Overall Out There is a gorgeous comic book that comes with a truly heartfelt story of discovery and freedom. Both Emily & Laurence Alison use their own experiences to craft a poignant narrative that gets you asking the very same questions as Lucy does during her own journey. What Out There ultimately aims to show is that there’s still hope out there, and even in the darkest of days great things can grow from the tiniest of seeds. And it’s a message that we could all resonate with our own way.
Read this review and want to check Out There out for yourself? You can pledge towards the graphic novel by checking out the Kickstart page here.
Rob Lake - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow us on X/Facebook @GeekCultureRev, TikTok/YouTube @Geekculturereviews, and BlueSky @geekculturereviews.bsky.social
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