In 2013, writer Greg Rucka and artist Michael Lark brought what has since become one of Image Comics’ landmark series to life: Lazarus. Set in a near-future dystopia, the world of Lazarus is one in which society has settled into feudalism, ruled by sixteen extremely powerful Families. The story follows Forever Carlyle, the genetically enhanced super-soldier military type enforcer for the powerful Carlyle Family who is controlled by her father Malcolm Carlyle. However, a dozen years later, Lazarus is entering a new — and final — chapter, one that changes everything and could see the end of not just the Carlyle Family but the social order as the world knows it. That chapter is Lazarus: Fallen, the first issue of which will hit stores on June 25th. ComicBook had the opportunity to do an early review and, without getting into spoilers, the final chapter of the Lazarus story is one that fans of the series won’t want to miss and one that newcomers to the story will quickly find themselves engrossed in as well.
When Lazarus: Fallen #1 picks up, the Carlyle Family is on the hunt, specifically for Forever Carlyle. She’s finally broken free from her family’s control and has a new mission: burn it all down, even if that means burning her own Family down as well. It is an exciting premise and issue #1 pays off on it, wasting no time dropping readers into the situation as it sets up the early hours after Forever is declared rogue by the Carlyle Family. This is not a spoiler; first looks at Lazarus: Fallen reveal a strike team infiltrating the Hock Wellness and Preservation Facility 074 on the hunt for Forever only to find that she’s not there, having been aided by her own mother in escape. From there, the story moves forward to reveal time passing with Forever still rogue and the brutal lengths Malcolm is willing to go to get her back, lengths that include manipulation and control of his own family.
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I can’t get into more details about what those lengths entail — or about the twist in the final pages of issue #1; we’re doing this spoiler free. What I can get into is how seamless the story is. It’s been three years since the last issue of Lazarus (Lazarus: Risen #7 arrived in 2022,) but Rucka hasn’t missed a beat with the storytelling. For those already familiar with Lazarus, this latest installment fits in perfectly with everything readers already know and one can nicely hit the ground running. For readers coming to the world of Lazarus with Fallen #1 as their starting point, while going back to the beginning is an absolute must so as to get the full story, you still get an intriguing hook and the turn on the final page will have you quite literally trying to turn the page to get more (don’t worry, a second issue will follow in July, you’ll get more and what Rucka is doing here is already very much worth the wait.)
But while Rucka’s writing is impeccable — The Old Guard creator is highly regarded for a reason — it’s not the only element of Lazarus: Fallen #1 that stands out. Lark’s art here is superb. The book has a look and feel that is both realistic — there are moments when Lark’s work almost looks like a photograph, it’s so crisp and clean — and beautifully textured. It’s the balance between these two elements that give the book a cinematic feel, reminding readers that this is a big story told on a big scale even within the more intimate parameters of the comic book format. That, interestingly, is particularly noticeable when you get into the details: freckles smattered across a character’s nose, the way a body crumples on the floor, the look of resignation in the eyes of one character and the sort of conspiratorial gleam in another’s. Lazarus has always been good, with both Rucka and Lark delivering fantastic work, but Fallen is not only the story at its peak, but both creators doing some of their absolute career-best work. The result is something that is gritty and elevated in equal measure.
To put a finer point on things, Lazarus changed what is possible with sci-fi dystopian stories in comics and created something really special when it arrived in 2013 and now, the final chapter Lazarus: Fallen is not only starting off as a very worthy next part but is poised to perhaps be even better than the original. With excellent writing and art that may be some of the best of both creators to date, Lazarus: Fallen #1 may see Forever Carlyle on a mission to burn everything down, but it looks like this story is going to go out in a blaze of glory.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Lazarus: Fallen #1 goes on sale June 25th from Image Comics.
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