There are so many great independent publishers these days putting out quality titles. IDW is no exception, with a clear winner in the new series Supermarket, written by Brian Wood with art by Kristian.
Issue #1 introduces us to Pella, the rebelious young woman the series is centered on. Pella lives in the suburbs of a near future megalopolis called the Supermarket, which seems somewhat of a cross between LA and Tokyo. Pella begins the story being critical of the money wasted by the wealthy, the child of wealthy parents herself. By the end of the book, Pealla finds herself orphaned and nearly broke, stranded in the city without a home or money to fall back on.
The writing is crisp and well paced, and while the young rowdy female teen angst thing doesn't normally do anything for me, I found Pella's character appealing. The murder of Pella's family comes as an unexpected twist and what at first seems like an Indie, social critique comic quickly turns into an action story with tons of threat that'll make you eager for the release of issue 2.
The true power of the book though lies in Kristian's Manga-influenced artistic style, and tremendous use of color. Kristian uses an unusual pallette of pinks, oranges, and lime greens to generate a futuristic feel in what is otherwise a very familiar setting. His style is quite loose and uses an expressionist line to create a world that is somewhere between the physical reality Pella inhabits and her mental world of critical, curious irony.
My girlfriend wants to steal the issue off me and frame it on the wall because she likes the cover so much. I know of no better endorsement than that really.
Pick up a copy. You won't regret it.