Amber Atoms. (c,w,a) Kelly Yates. Vol. 1. 2023.
Amber Atoms is a refreshing take on an ole Sci-Fi tradition. I love the character’s overall style, in the same way that I love, say, Liberty Meadows or Power Girl or any number of “Girl Power” characters. Kelly Yates, the creator, writer and artist of this comic book, is best known for illustrating multiple comics and covers for Doctor Who (IDW/Titan). I really like the look and feel of what Yates is doing with his foray into what can be very familiar territory (from Buck Rogers to Star Wars). Another way of looking at it, no kid ever lost sleep considering the finer details of an Indiana Jones adventure. It’s Jones who is the big draw.
Okay, so you had me at Amber Atoms. She has moxie. Like a young Luke Skywalker, Amber Atoms is stuck in a rut, arguing with her parents, restless to cut loose, in a world she never asked for. It’s a multi-world, in fact, a sort of unstable coalition, a federation on the brink. Anything could set it off and Amber knows it.
Shades of Luke Skywalker. Girls just wanna have fun!
After a human-sized ant baddie is thwarted from attacking Amber, it looks like her protector, Ace Armstrong, might just stick around. A lot is happening very fast. But we get a pause to consider if they’re a match. The alliteration alone is priceless. Amber Atoms, all-around cute daredevil, and Ace Armstrong, super detective for the mighty Galactic Guard. And then they run off and hop aboard this dazzling retro-futuristic ship. Blast off! So, yeah, it’s a bit tongue-in-cheek stuff without ever outright admitting to it, sort of like what Star Wars is all about, right?
You had me at Amber Atoms.
Everything turns on the theft of a museum artifact with a secret message. Now, it’s up to Ace and Amber to navigate all the machinations of a fractured empire. As for me, I just go right back to Amber Atoms. You had me at Amber Atoms. I think Kelly Yates is on the right track. This is a collection of an earlier run and it really seems to me that the timing is just right to take stock and see where Amber goes next. She really could go anywhere she pleases.
