Skybound Entertainment, 2013, 20 pages
Manifest Destiny is a slight 20-page comic that did less to increase my gut than what I usually consume on my lunch break. This is a fascinating alternative reality work set in 1804. Lewis and Clark set out to scout the Louisiana Purchase for President Thomas Jefferson, who is very keen on finding out about the monsters that are reported to abide beyond the Mississippi!
Early America has been explored in fiction with perhaps 1% of the frequency of the post Civil War Old West. This was a time when a few intrepid explorers journeyed into unmapped lands in search of natural wonders in the face of fierce warrior tribes. Throwing in some kind of monster should make for a blast. The characters are developed quickly by Chris, who doesn’t allow them to remain cartoons past their first appearance.
I can’t with a clear conscience give away much here, as #1 is just a 20-page issue. Let’s just say Manifest Destiny gets off to a good start when Lewis and Clark stand on the banks of the Mississippi looking up at a weed-covered Saint Louis Arch…
