Black Science, Vol. 6: Forbidden Realms and Hidden Truths

Black Science

by Rick Remender, Matteo Scalera (Artist), Moreno Dinisio (Artist)

After years adrift in the chaotic Eververse, the McKay family finally reunites in their home dimension. But it's far from the happy end they expected. To save all there is and ever will be, the Dimensionauts need to cut deeper into the Onion than ever before!
RICK REMENDER & MATTEO SCALERA present the sixth Chapter of the runaway pulp Sci-Fi smash hit BLACK SCIENCE!
Collects BLACK SCIENCE #26-30

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Fiction, Comic Book, Adventure

136 pages, Paperback

First published July 19, 2017

About the author

Rick Remender is an American comic book writer and artist who resides in Los Angeles, California. He is the writer/co-creator of many independent comic books like Black Science, Deadly Class, LOW, Fear Agent and Seven to Eternity. Previously, he wrote The Punisher, Uncanny X-Force, Captain America and Uncanny Avengers for Marvel Comics.

Reviews

[Chad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rick Remender's best series. Scalero's art is amazing. Every page looks like a pulp Sci-Fi cover. Everything is starting to come home to roost. Not only is our team finally finding one another, but so are the many mistakes Grant made in the past volumes.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

From what I've read on t'Interwebz, this is a book that rubs a lot of people up the wrong way, for some reason. Personally, I absolutely love it. The artwork is GORGEOUS and the story never fails to leave me grinning from ear-to-shining-ear. (I think I may have mixed my clichés there. Not to worry.) It's old school pulp SF with a ravishing modern veneer and I shall continue to buy it for as long as they keep making it. So nur.

Quote of the week:

'I will build my throne from the spines of your young. I will shit fire on the faces of your mothers.'
- Har'logh the Defiler

[ScottIsANerd (GrilledCheeseSamurai) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whelp...things are crazy bonkers now. That's for certain.

Black science continues to be bananas in the best way possible. This volume brings everything that has happened before it full circle and plopped us front and center of a whirlwind shit storm.

This is the Black Science I love.

Everything that Grant managed to fuck up for 25 issues has now come back to bite him in the ass, the dimensionauts are finally reunited just in time to witness the end of their homeworld, and the artwork for all of it continues to be friggen awesome.

This is pulp science fiction at its finest and I love it.

[RG · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a weird Volume. The start and ending were great. The middle was way too weird. I think when it became a little superhero style I found that it was slightly unnecessary. However after this period it returned back to Grants story where it found a sense of weirdnorm. Can't wait for the next in Mar

[Baba · Rating 4 out of 5]

Best volume so far! Pia is on the hunt of a signal from a fellow crew member! Who is it?
.
Somehow, somewhere there's superheroes in this book... interesting? Most def!
.
Meanwhile poor ol' Grant, unloved, unappreciated, abandoned... oh and responsible for trillions of deaths across the Eververse.. guy can't catch a break :)
.
Reading another review, I do concur with the idea that quite a bit of Remender's work has a 'Grant McKay' in it... although I do believe this is the ultimate version. Also I don't feel you're meant to like the characters (although I do like Pia, Nate and Shawn), you're meant just to like the story and concepts... like you weren't meant to like the characters in Seinfeld?
.
8 out of 12.
.

[CS · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bullet Review:

I think this circled around - I liked this quite a bit then I hated it and now I’m at this point where I find the characters obnoxious and unable to stay dead - and yet I want to know what happens next.

This has the plot of Casanova Quinn without the tongue in cheek and taking itself far too goddamn seriously. Is there any series that Remender writes where his characters AREN’T whiny emo brats?

[Wing Kee · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit over the top and kinda has a weird tone shift.

World: The art is fantastic, the creativity and the coming together of all the different species and worlds is amazing. The world building is also fantastic with a lot of the chickens coming home to roost. All the different pieces that the world has been building and playing with and it is all mashing together and it’s glorious.

Story: The story is a bit janky and it’s something that is irking me. There is the fantastical weird aspect with the witch with also needs to mash with the science and the aliens and the space and it’s really a mess. However, it is a mess to begin with because of McKay so it does make sense, but it’s still a fairly jarring read. The tone and designs shift on the other hand was a bit pointless and needless, with the superhero comics tone coming in an muddying up the water, it was not really all the special and added nothing but disconnect me with the story. The final three books are coming and all shit is breaking happening at once!

Characters: Still a collection fo fairly flawed and selfish characters here. Vanity and pride are the order of the day and it is interesting to see these people self destruct and blame others for it. It’s like looking at a horror show and not being able to look away.

Janky and choppy.

Onward to the next book!

[James DeSantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Holy shit bonkers volume.

First Half is all about Nate and PIa reuniting. We knew it would happen so no spoilers there. However, what happened to Nate? Oh he became something special alright. Then we get to my dude Grant who's been in lockup too long. Finally free it's time to save his family but when monsters from all different worlds start invading is it too late to save anyone?

This is the most batshit insane final two issues but works so well to give a boost the series needed. While the first half was good I didn't love it. But 2nd half is fucking nuts and I wanted it to go on forever. Grant being back in focus helps to, and Pia as a hero is badass as well as Nate's new powers. Overall, great stuff and easy to jump back in even years later. Can't wait to fully finish this series now and maybe even re-read it down the line.

[Valéria. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Po poslednom volume sa to neskutočne rozbehlo. It's the end of the world as we know it - dostali sme nádherné monštrum s menom Har'logh the Defiler, ktorý je obrovská fialová huňatá potvora s vulgárnymi a morbídnymi hláškami; vrátila sa Chandra aj s jej už nie malou populáciou parazit-duchov alebo čo za shit to vlastne je; do sci-fi žánru sa nám krásne zamieša superhrdinský, objaví sa tím, kde je pár over-powered členov, jeden mravčiar a, pripravme fanfáry, ... Nathan!
Už len proste vychvaľujem číslo za číslom, ale keď ono si to naozaj zaslúži..

[Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing collection, full of powerhouse scenes, with each topping the next as all the crows come home to roost. There's more than a little Fear Agent at work here, in the plotting, but it all works as the Earth becomes the target of many of the worst inter-dimensional threats that Gordon and his group have come across over the entire scope of the series. Some amazing artwork on display here as well, with some beautiful coloring work throughout. In the past I've felt that this series had kind of exhausted itself, but maybe it still has some life left? Looking forward to vol. 7.

[Joni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Esta serie que parecía no tener un horizonte claro, de golpe mete un par de volantazos inesperados y hasta mete cambios de género. De la ciencia ficción al conocimiento personal al terror a la fantasía y ahora superheroico pero también dura poco.
La historia es fresca y bien narrada, el arte es un diez.
Parece que queda todo sentado para encarrilarse al final por caminos impredecibles al principio aunque siempre guarda su márgen de sorpresa.

[Koen Claeys · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you thought ‘Black Science’ couldn’t get any more crazy, this volume proves you wrong. Everything makes sense, despite the extreme craziness, and I couldn’t help to lose myself in the perfectly drawn action on the pages.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jesus tap dancing Christ. If I thought it happened before, I was wrong. The shit has actually hit the fan, and it's just getting on everything...

[Nelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Without spoiling too much, every single plot thread comes to fruition in this volume, even things you might have forgotten about from the first few volumes. Very satisfying and cathartic.

[Brylliams · Rating 5 out of 5]

After a quick refresher, I dove right back into this series and I gotta say it is still delivering plenty of fun.

[Devon Munn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well ok

Was wondering where the hell Nate was lol. Shawn too

[Aron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, sticking with this series has really paid off because I'm lovin' it! Remender & Scalera really take the series to a whole new level with the 5 issues in this volume, & now that I'm caught up in the trades I'm gonna add this series to my pull list & start reading on a monthly basis, & that's about the highest compliment I can give to any comic series.

[Leo Cunha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked where the story was going in volume 5, but this one seemed too chaotic. The philosophical element was very strong in the previous books, however, this book showed an awful lack of it, while was too action-driven. I still enjoyed it, but as a big fan of Black Science i must say i am disappointed.

[T. Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good but the plot is more and more confusing to me.

[Caitlyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I spent most of this volume going "Noooooooooooooooooooooooo"

[Bill Coffin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review isn't just for the this particular volume of Black Science, but for the entire nine-volume series, since I read it all in one go, and honestly, the entire thing is so consistent in its writing, artwork, tone, pace and quality, that it becomes fairly difficult to tell were one chapter ends and another begins.

I came to Black Science as an ardent fan of Rick Remender's Low, a series so sublimely good that it's earned me a huge amount of goodwill with Remender. So it was that i dove into Black Science, not knowing what it was about, but fairly certain that I would have a good, if not great time. And I'd say that, ultimately, is what I got. A good, but not great time.

The story is kind of a hyperactive mash=up of Lost in Space and Quantum Leap, with Grant McKay and his League of Anarchic Scientists jaunting endlessly through the Eververse, an infinite onion-like structure of alternate realities densely layered upon each other. The tech that enables this is the Pillar, a supertech-widget McKay invents so that alternate realities can be plundered for their resources, but the whole thing goes sideways and he and his team and his family are stuck in a super-perilous mission to survive as each alternate reality they visit is more hostile than the last. The further they go, the more they realize that they might not just be putting themselves at risk...they might be endangering all of reality itself.

First, the good. Remender and artist Matteo Scalera work very well together, and the amount of imagination put forth in this is terrific. Each new world is a blast of fresh images, ideas and story hooks. In the first half of the story, especially, the world-building and destroying on display is a thing of wonder. And Scalera's art seems perfect for this particular story. It's a little wild and stylized, but for this tale, it works rather well.

Now, the bad. What works so well in this story also works against it - the wild energy and loopiness often comes at the expense of continuity. You ever get that feeling in Heavy Metal stories that the story itself just kind of lurched forward a bit because they've only got 4 pages left to tell 6 pages of story? Yeah, that happens all the time in Black Science. Sometimes, it's "Wait, where did McKay get that suit of armor from?" And sometimes it's, "Wait, how did a huge plot point happen entirely off-stage?" This gets really distracting in the second half of things, especially when we have parallel stories that offer little to no visual cue that we're jumping from one story to the next. It doesn't help that for much of this, we've got three female characters who look almost identical to each other, and while Scalera is a fine artist, he's got about four facial expressions on him, so sometimes telling certain characters apart becomes difficult. And when different versions of those same characters from other dimensions begin bumping into each other, you kind of throw your hands up and keep reading on the hopes that eventually when Remender has to stop and catch his breath, he'll explain exactly what is going on.

Ultimately, this is a good-ish series. It's far better in the first half than the second, and the ending, to be honest, feels like a huge cosmic-level cop-out. A lot of McKay's exposition makes you wonder if Rememder is using Black Science to work through some mid-life crisis of his own. But at least Black Science feels like a story for the sake of a story, and not an elaborate storyboard pitch for a Netflix adaptation, which is more than can be said for many graphic novels coming out these days. If only Remender and Scalera had throttled back just a little bit and didn't try so hard to be the anarchists they are depicting.

[Anthony Mullins · Rating 5 out of 5]

BLACK SCIENCE ISSUE #30 (last of Vol. 6) REVIEW:

Grant & his brother Brian make their way through a dimension crossed clusterfuck war zone, headed to Block Tower on a mission to reacquire Grant’s pillar. Kadir struggles with proving his intent while Block prepares for travel, and a new demonic presence makes itself known in the most aggressive way possible.

This issue of Black Science is a culmination of events, starting to scratch the surface of the chaos to come. Everything throughout the series has built layers and layers upon itself, building up to the current condition that Grant finds himself in. It’s a lot of fun to see Grant doing what Grant does best, even in his lessened state, and Kadir is yet again captivating to watch struggle and the intense decisions that he continues to make. This issue felt like a classic Black Science issue, yet still elevates the series to another level (again). Nothing about this series follows a formula, which leaves you with no choice but to strap in and go along for the ride; thus has never been a story that you could predict, and this issue renders you helpless in trying to do so. With the ravaged condition of Earth in mind, the conclusion of this arc is one of the most brilliant and ridiculous cliffhangers to hit the series yet!

Overall:
Matteo’s art consistently matches a thrilling pace and beat with Remender’s writing, possibly stronger than ever within the pages of this issue. Even after a hand injury, Matteo was able to give us some of the most awesome splash pages & spread panels to date! Remender’s signature style and flair for storytelling shines brightest within the pages of Black Science. Issue #30 proves that this series is a masterpiece of totally stunning originality & awe, from two truly brilliant Generators.

9.5/10



I wrote this review in partnership with Columbus Comics Corner.
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[Rolando Marono · Rating 3 out of 5]

Si bien esta serie tenía gran potencial para volverse completamente loca y mostrarnos cosas que nunca habíamos imaginado; en este volumen toda esa locura es desatada. En tomos anteriores habíamos sido testigos de escenas y dimensiones con situaciones muy interesantes y muy locas, pero en este capítulo Remender desata un caos total en nuestra bella tierra para lo que parece ser el fin del multiverso y de la serie. Como leí este tomo relativamente tarde, ya es sabido que la serie terminará en el tomo nueve, pero aquí es donde Remender comienza a cerrar su historia.
El quinto volumen fue bastante bueno para cerrar partes de la trama y abrir unas nuevas que retoma directamente en este tomo. La historia se continúa con Grant en el asilo, Pia obligada a vivir una vida que no quiere, Kadir teniendo todo lo que jamás deseó y el Sr. Block uniéndose con los Blocks de otra dimensión para explotar el multiverso de todos sus recursos.
Lamentablemente Remender conecta las líneas que había dejado abiertas, principalmente con Chandra y sus parásitos gaseosos con mentes de enjambre y la plaga de aniquilación de los milpies nihilistas. Eso aunado a más cosas locas que no spoilearé revientan aquí de una sola vez.
¿Por qué tres estrellas? Si bien el comienzo y el final del tomo son muy buenos, la parte de en medio no lo es tanto. Para ser más específico toda la parte de Nate con su equipo de súper héroes multi versales se me hizo confusa, exagerada y que no aportaba realmente nada a la trama. Los diálogos de esa parte me confundieron un poco y no ayudó que de la nada apareciera un personaje de tomos anteriores que entra en un conflicto con Nate y Pia cuyas causas no entiendo y sus consecuencias las entiendo mucho menos.
De cualquier manera parece ser que de aquí al final, el resto de los tomos serán impresionantemente buenos.

[Scott Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

After McKay was left locked away by Block (his compromised source of corporate funding from the very beginning) after getting Pia back to earth, Pia is left to adjust to life on an earth where her mom has no idea what her husband's really done and has married Kadir, who is taking credit for the pillar and everything it has produced. The first issue starts dealing with these mundanities and demonstrating just how scuzzy Block-with-pillar can be.

Then Pia gets a contact on the monitor Grant left her last volume to watch for interdimensional arrivals. This marks the beginning of all hell breaking loose as the mess across the dimensions arrives on the earth Grant and co. have returned to. The volume follows this spiraling chaos and what each of the protagonists does to challenge it. We even get a pretty spot on amusing satire on superheroes for the better part of couple issues. Scalera just seems to get better and better with each issue. I enjoyed Fear Agent, Tokyo Ghost, and Low but this is the best of Remender's Sci-fi books for my money. The combination of sheer black absurdity in this study of hubris and its consequences and the surreal humor make it one of my absolute favorites.

[Andy Hickman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Black Science, Vol. 6: Forbidden Realms and Hidden Truths

As post-apocalyptic as you can get! Every generic form of villain and hero is here! This series has picked up speed. One cannot reverse what one has read!

#26 – “NO ONE gets out of this life with their heart intact. That’s the PRICE of the ticket.”
#27 – “So many years running. I feel like if ii slow down, I’ll stop ENTIRELY.”
#28 – “In a great scientific cathedral, nearly six trillion dimensions away from our own, a congregation of heroes undertakes the momentous task of saving not only THEIR world but EVERY world!”
#29 – “Do you DENY that the alien plague that has taken over Hong Kong is connected to YOUR experiments, Mr Aslan?”
#30 – “It wasn’t until I’d f###ed up the entire world that I realized how to fix my own.”

[Rocky Sunico · Rating 4 out of 5]

The theme of this volume is clearly the darkest timeline or whatever because everything goes wrong. It was some solace that Grant located his daughter Pia, but in the end he had given up perhaps too much in order to prove to her how committed he is to becoming better.

But man, all seems lost with Mr. Brook setting the direction for everything now. Grant is locked up. Pia is forced to live a lie to protect her family. And the troubles go on and on.

But the way this volume ends - major bonkers. It's another tonal shift, but it works for this story universe. And I can't believe the next volume isn't the last one just yet.

[Rick Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

An improvement over the past two volumes where I felt that Black Science had completely stagnated story-wise. Maybe it's because Grant isn't featured quite as much, but I felt the story hummed along more smoothly as we followed Pia trying to locate a signal from a fellow crew member. The final couple issues in this volume do a great job setting up intruiging plot points for both Pia and Nate.

Consternations with the uneven story telling aside, I like how much Remender allows Matteo Scalera to go all out on this series. The artwork is absolutely wonderful - there's not a single weak page in sight. This is a beautiful book irrespective of any other shortcomings.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Looks like we've escalated to full batshit crazy. But in a good way! The one-off villains from previous volumes all come together at once in an insane climax. Well, an insane cliffhanger, I guess. The climax is for future volume(s)? I think I was little miffed to find out that the one-off villains had been more important all along, although I still don't really know anything about them. Plus, the strange superhero group jaunt for an issue was strange...but largely acceptable. I get the feeling at this point that Black Science can do no wrong.

[Luke John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every successive volume of Black Science seems to offer a different, and distinct, brand of chaos/insanity. Volume 6 delivers a twisted super hero style narrative, perhaps the most explicitly so of the whole series, having toyed with the concept previously. I continue to be impressed by the ability of Remender to keep the quality so high here, whilst introducing enough variation in theme to keep readers slightly off balance at all times. Highly recommended.

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

Remender and Scalera's dimension-hopping, family drama gets even more wild in this volume as we see what's become of Nate. Its not as impactful as what happened to Pia but I'm hoping things gets wrenched up when/if the whole family comes together. There was a lot of extra special alien weirdness here and I felt the story relied too much on it. Scalera's work is great. The emotions he's able to convey from just a face are great. Overall, another solid read.