Borealis

by Mark Verheiden, Aaron Douglas, Cliff Richards (Artist)

From film and TV screenwriter Mark Verheiden (The Mask, Battlestar Galactica, Swamp Thing, ), writer/actor Aaron Douglas (Battlestar Galactica, Hemlock Grove), and artist Cliff Richards (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Justice League) comes Borealis, a tale of hard-edged crime and supernatural terror!Under the blazing night skies of Alaska, something mysterious is emerging in the remote village of Qinu—something ancient . . . and powerful. After thirteen years away and hoping never to return, State Trooper Silaluj “Sil” Osha is sent to Qinu to investigate the savage murders of local mobsters. But more than just working to solve a crime, Sil must face the shattering memories of her own dark past and uncover her frightening connection to deadly legends.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Horror

80 pages, Hardcover

Published July 9, 2024

About the author

Mark Verheiden is an American television, movie, and comic book writer. He was a co-executive producer for the television series Falling Skies for DreamWorks Television and the TNT Network.

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars maybe? This should have been at least 5 issues. The Inuit folklore and influence is cool but nothing was developed enough.

[Alan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This probably should really be classified as a short story, or at best a novella. There are some plusses to the book.

I really liked the effort that was put into the setting (a remote town in Alaska) and the Inuit people. The lead character is an Innuit woman who's grandmother arranged (arguably forced) into leaving town because of some not very nice things the granddaughter had done. Years later she she returns to her hometown as an Alaska State Trooper investigating multiple homicides and the local crime boss's involvement, or non-involvement in same.

Except not all is at it appears on the surface, and the accuracy I think is off, but hints are laid that Inuit spiritualism/mythology has a hand in things.

SPOILER











Frankly the cliff hanger sucks. Obviously sales are going to determine if we get to find out what happened to our cast.

[Mee Too · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the essay thats worth half your grade and you just finished a few hour before class started😂

Like you’re clever enough to throw some BS together real quick but you definitely didn’t put any work into what you wrote. I mean 80 pages? Thats not even a high school essay😂

Interesting folk lore thats hard to believe because the presentation looks half assed.

Decent art 2.8⭐️ I rounded up for art and imagination.

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was alright. It felt very rushed with only 3 issues and left a lot open. It's about an Inuit woman who is a cop. She gets sent back to her home town to catch the local gang there. Meanwhile there's some kind of tribal supernatural thing going on with her too. It's not very clear even to her what's happening.A couple more issues would have made for a more well-rounded series.

[Thorbjorn Helstrom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story and fast action with terrific art, maybe a little too far. It is an exciting read, but it feels like it's just missing "something". It has an interesting concept with the inuit mythological demon possessed cop and even more interesting what is her father and what happens if their future together?
I hope there is more in the series.

[Tristan · Rating 2 out of 5]

At a certain point I wanted to drop it because I was so bored. Only finished it to say I did. The last page made me a little more interested, but it couldn’t save it. Her powers just feel like generic “energy powers”. How do her powers actually work? Can she maybe summon spirits to talk with them? One of my biggest problems is that they don’t make her powers original enough

[Ross · Rating 3 out of 5]

Feels like someone couldn't sell their spec script to a studio, but tried this treatment out as a graphic novel...

Bonus: Inuit culture doesn't get its time in comics NEARLY enough. That was a unique take.

[Dean · Rating 2 out of 5]

The art was fine.
The story didn't draw me in. I was excited for a story with this setting after watching Night Country. It wasn't for me.
Try it digitally.

[Shawn Ingle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Had potential but was poorly executed.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars, rounded down. This story grabbed me right away, and I liked the ride despite some darker moments told in flashbacks. I'm interested to see if it goes anywhere!

[Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up also at the Regina Public Library. I'm in Saskatchewan, so I felt fitting and poetic to read a graphic novel titled Borealis. Anyway, rated it as a three as it is so hard to understand where the story is going. I like the setting as well as the art. Although, when I already had to leave the library and I still have not figured out the plot. Where is the story going? Darn. I will probably have to buy the Kindle version on Amazon just to know how it ends... and well, discover the plot.