“Trespasser”; a tale focusing on a Father and Daughter, Hector and Maria, living alone and scared in their farmhouse, hiding. Published by indie comics aficionados, Alterna Comics, Trespasser is a 4 part mini series including an epilogue to cap the series off. Joe’s read it and here’s what he thought…

Trespasser is a simple yarn, told very well. One that engages past the means of its surface narrative, and speaks to the fear of being alone in all of us.

The basic set up here is that Hector and Maria, father and daughter, are holed up in the house he lived in as a child. Something has happened out there in the world, something cataclysmic or alien, and it appears that food is in short supply – coming with it, a distrust of strangers. Into this, and actual Alien is thrown into the mix, and what unfolds during the 4 issues (plus epilogue) is an examination on the protective qualities of being a father, and some really grim happenings along the way.

In many ways, Trespasser fits nicely alongside “The Walking Dead” & “The Last of Us“ and even “Signs” not in terms of narrative content, merely in tone. There’s a forlorn approach to things here, a desolation, and an unseen terror in the way characters hold themselves. The aftermath of whatever cataclysm or apocalypse is felt here, there’s a pained way in which the Father goes about things, he’s tired, exasperated even, but he won’t give up on his Daughter. The thing that I think is an absolute plus for Trespasser are moments shared between Hector and Maria, as they’ve been given time to connect right in front of us, naturally and in ways that make you absolutely believe in their plight.

The art style here is functional and not overly complicated – line work is bold and simple, but it works within the confines of the story and we’re given enough variation in panels and placement to make the tale quite engaging. In fact, it comes across as quite experimental at stages. It’s actually the colour here that helps Trespasser stand out against the crowd and provides it with a striking nature, Kristian Rossi does a great job with lighting and colour in general and this really adds weight to the ‘feel’ of Trespasser. The bleakness.

I do wonder if Rossi based some of the panels featuring Hector on Karl Urban, because there is a striking resemblance going on there. Leading me on to my inevitable “I think this would work well as a film/show etc…” But I think that only speaks to how filmic this comic is, and how easy it is to ‘fill in the gaps’ between panels. There’s a part of me that wants to fight my need to suggest comics be ‘upscaled’ to film as there’s a large movement of people suggesting that comics needn’t be the stepping stone to a film, and can stand on their own merit. I say, there’s good arguments in both camps.

Ultimately I really enjoyed the yarn “Trespasser” told, it felt very much like an extended “Future Shock” from the likes of 2000AD, which in my books, is a hefty accolade to throw at something.

At time of writing all four issues and epilogue are available, and can be found on comixology and other good comics retailers.

Joe Crouch is a crusty mollusc with delusions of grandeur and pretensions of artistic endeavour. His tea is served between two and four. He tweets, infrequently @Grost and Instagrams his food @Sourcrouch.