Neverland

Neverland, #0

Written by: Joe Brusha

Art by: Jean-Paul Deshong

This book is everything you’d expect from an “origin” issue—lots of characters/relationships being introduced; a number of plotlines being set up; and just a hint of danger, controversy, and/or surprise…basically, you’re getting the pilot episode of what you hope will become a successful series.

And this is a pilot worth picking up.

To be fair, not a whole lot goes on in Neverland #0. The story begins in media res: We are shown a frantic, tweenish-looking boy who appears to be running over the rooftops of New York City, trying desperately to elude the clutches of some unknown pursuer. Later on, we are given Nathan Eton Cross, a homeless man undergoing intense psychiatric treatment…with a prosthetic hook for a hand.

Characters like Wendy, Tink, and, ultimately, Peter Pan are given modern twists, and in some cases completely non-canonical retellings. Pan has apparently just returned from kidnapping another child from the real world, our world. We quickly see that Pan is the king—or perhaps the dictator—of Neverland, and we learn that he has been harvesting young children to keep his power fresh.

And that’s the beautiful twist in this book. Neverland is no longer a land of dreams; rather, it is the domain of a soul-stealing tyrant. Wendy becomes suddenly aged, struggling to keep her fractured family together. And you have Captain Hook, or rather Cross, who we come to learn is destined to take back Neverland from this dark Peter Pan. So we don’t necessarily get to know any one character particularly well, but we are given a glimpse into their madness.

I found Joe Brusha’s writing to be terse and appropriate; similarly, I found Jean-Paul Deshong’s artwork clean, sharp, and well executed. Brusha teases and cajoles us, makes us question preconceived notions of J. M. Barrie’s world—and he does a wonderful job of setting up what I imagine will be a compelling, well-rendered vision of this fanciful land, Neverland.