The Omega Men was supposed to prematurely end its originally planned 12-issue run with last month’s issue #7, but fan outcry has kept the book alive long enough for the creative team to wrap up its story. That’s a good thing, because not only is The Omega Men one of DC Comics’ best books, it’s one of The A.V. Club’s Best Comics of 2015, consistently impressing with its mix of politically charged sci-fi, bold superhero action, and striking visuals on a nine-panel grid.
Writer Tom King has made DC’s cosmic corner more captivating by drawing inspiration from real-world issues, using the Vega System of planets as a stand-in for the Middle East. In this preview of The Omega Men #8, King also introduces climate change as a significant story point, with planets harvesting the rare resource of Stellarium to prevent the devastation that befell Superman’s home planet, Krypton, when its core became unstable. Based on these pages, it looks like King is jumping back and forth between past and present for this issue, switching character perspectives for the flashbacks to show different views of one specific conflict.
The distinctions between the different planets and time periods are made clear in the artwork. Artist Barnaby Bagenda contrasts the expansive rural environment of Voorl with the cold cityscape of The Citadel’s home base, and Romulo Fajardo, Jr. intensifies those distinctions in his colors, using a warm palette for Voorl and a much chillier one for The Citadel, which also features a green glow to enhance the sinister tone of the scene. The visuals of The Omega Men are totally in sync with the script, and it’s encouraging to see this creative team get a chance to finish their story.