Advance Review: Man’s Best #1

Pets in space? Yes, please! As a dad of 2 rescue fur babies (Bella & Julep <3) & someone w/ a lifelong interest in space, I launched headfirst into Man’s Best #1 by Pornsak Pichetshote & Jesse Lonergan from BOOM! Studios, and it was all systems go for this debut issue! Pichetshote instantly creates a connection w/ the heart of the story: the unwavering loyalty & love between a person & their pet(s).

The story follows Doc, a human scientist, & her 3 emotional support animals - Athos, the feline leader of the trio, Porthos, the affable/goofy Golden Retriever sidekick, and Lovey, a gruff but loyal Boston Terrier. When their research spaceship crashes on a strange new world, the unlikely animal heroes find themselves on a mission to rescue their human and, quite possibly, the future of mankind.

Pichetshote absolutely nails the dynamics between these three characters. Their interactions w/ one another were great & really helped to build out a unique personality for each of them. What helped land this so well for me is that I kept envisioning how Bella & Julep would fare in a quest to save me & the human race (spoiler alert: we’d all be doomed). I’m sure anyone w/ pets of their own will feel a similar instant connection.

This heartwarming connection is perfectly complemented by the gorgeous artwork of Jesse Lonergan. The characters look amazing — especially the fantastic mech suits each pet gets to rock! The alien world they land on also looks great & Lonergan draws some great action panels where the pets face a really cool looking enemy.

This was a really fun & heartwarming debut issue. I’m already in love with the characters & I can’t wait to see how their adventures continue!

Rating: 10/10