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As someone who is very familiar with Greg Rucka’s work, The Forged #1 stood out as a project that is very much his style while also different. He is co-writing this with Eric Trautmann, who has done some graphic design work for one of my favourite Rucka comics, Lazarus. So these two’s sensibilities combined to make a book that is both familiar and strikingly different.
The Forged #1 (2023) Is A Melting Pot
The world The Forged #1 introduces us to has various elements from Rucka’s other work and clear influences. You got the specially designed, even cloned, military squad in The Forged, much like The Old Guard and Lazarus. You got the decadence of “British Empire but in Space” ala Warhammer 40k. You got the overt sexualization and over-the-top crass language like any good issue of Heavy Metal. And last but not least, you got over the top sci-fi technobabble to get your head around like any fun military sci-fi novel.
None of these are bad, matter of fact, I would say they are the selling point of the series. The Forged #1 comes out with such a sense of style that it knows exactly what it is and is not afraid to say it out loud. The front cover has the tagline sticker “A team of ultra-lethal Imperial Vixens. A cabal of Space Witches. A bug stomp on a Hell-World” so that should tell you what you are getting into. This isn’t Rucka’s usual thought-provoking politically harrowing comic. This is sex, drugs, and rock and roll in comic book form.
And with all that said, Rucka and Trautmann manage to pepper things in here that draw the reader in. The characters are distinct with personalities that jump off the page. Intriguing mysteries surrounding Cassandra and the Empress Eternal’s powers. And a distinct sense that the reader has just dropped into a living breathing world, which is complemented by the worldbuilding documents at the end of the issue.
Over-The-Top In Everyway
In The Forged #1, the art by Mike Henderson, colors by Nolan Woodard, and letters by Ariana Maher aid in this sense of style, drawing the reader into the world but also telling you that this is over the top and to not think too hard. Mike draws each character with something that visually signifies who they are while in a flamboyant exaggerated way and yet manages to make it feel natural to the world.
Captain Reyfort has a silly oversized mustache, Vic has a baggy crop top, Jo is drawn with arms so massive they feel like they barely fit in the panel, etc. Even his panel layout and shot composition conveys personality and sensuality without being too crass even for a book like this. Cassandra is shown to be exposing herself, but in an indirect way so as to not oversexualized the page but to get across that she uses pleasure and pain as tools, the two being interlinked to her.
Nolan uses a broad colour pallet to convey the feel of the world. The ship is muted browns, it’s utilitarian, and used for specific purposes. In contrast, Cassandra’s room is a mystical place of different shades of blue washing out everything else, the only thing overriding the blue is Cassandra herself in her glowing white cloak. Nolan’s use of colours here really sells the shift from military sci-fi to something more science fantasy, which also helps the reader connect to Reyfort as he too is uneasy with the change.
Ariana’s letters give each page a sense of whimsey that helps sell its over-the-top nature. Word balloons have squiggly tails that seem to flow around the speaker. Cassandra’s bubbles are not uniform in shape and the font seems to be less structured than the ones used for other characters. And when stretching a sentence out to convey time dilation is done in the way old cartoons would stretch the word out artificially.
The Forged #1 Is A Wild Ride With Promise
The Forged #1 is an over-the-top, very sexually charged, and very coarse military sci-fi story in the vein of old Heavy Metal magazines. It’s cheesy, it’s silly, it’s gorgeous, it’s full of personality, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. This series is shaping up to be something special if The Forged #1 is any indication.