The first issue of Boom! Studios’ Thomas Alsop miniseries introduces readers to Thomas Alsop, the current “Hand of Manhattan”, a supernatural defender of the island of Manhattan. The Alsop family has shouldered this burden since the 1700s, when Thomas’ ancestor Richard Alsop was cursed by a Native American shaman with this supernatural responsibility. The Alsop family has performed its duties quietly over the centuries, but Thomas has become a modern-day Internet occult celebrity.
Writer Chris Miskiewicz and artist Palle Schmidt craft a first issue that splits its focus between Thomas and Richard Alsop. The past adventures of Richard Alsop are actually more interesting than Thomas’ modern day adventures, and Schmidt’s art does a great job of using color palette to separate the modern and past narratives, with Thomas’ adventures having more color, while Richard’s adventures are depicted in stark black-and-white. Thomas’ ancestor is a stoic family man doing his best to stop evil from coming to the shores of Manhattan, while Thomas seems like a drunken, self-absorbed celebrity who is fundamentally unlikeable. The two Alsop’s adventures do intersect, and the first issue promises that something dark from Richard’s past is on the horizon for Thomas.
The first issue of Thomas Alsop is a nicely illustrated comic with an interesting premise and characters; it is worth checking out.
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