Review: 'Only the Savage Are Left' #1 Ponders the Cost of a Cure in a Monster Apocalypse
ONLY THE SAVAGE ARE LEFT #1
TL;DR
Only the Savage Are Left #1 is amonster-apocalypse story with a soul. It reframes the genre’s typical question of what does survival cost? Zack Kaplan and Stefano Raffaele build a world with moral weight and introduce a protagonist compelling enough to carry it.
Creative Team
Writer: Zack Kaplan
Artist: Stefano Raffaele
Colorist: Thiago Rocha
Letterer: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Full Review
Only the Savage Are Left centers on Ryder, a young guy who is presented as a genuinely good person. He was a hall monitor in school before disaster struck and now serves as an assistant to his survivor camp’s medical professional (a.k.a. his mother). Kaplan drops him into a world that has absolutely no use for any of that. The virus that has been spreading for years has turned infected people into something barely recognizable. They’re not your traditional post-apocalyptic zombies. These creatures are sentient, but they will still mess you up.
The major twist that Kaplan introduces is that, early on, society discovered that the only way to stop your own transformation is to kill another infected person. What’s the real reason for society’s collapse after a discovery like that? The virus itself or humanity’s descent to a kill-or-be-killed mentality? That's the question this book is built around and Kaplan allows the tension to permeate rather than spelling it all at once in the debut issue.
Ryder’s love for Oaklynn, someone from his past who he meets up with again years later, gives this book its heart and keeps the reader tethered to relatable emotions. In this new reality, Oaklynn has been shaped by a life that didn't give her the luxury of optimism. The juxtaposition of their experiences offers a more traditional framing of an apocalypse story, but the unique dilemma this world’s survivors face each and every day.
Raffaele employs nuanced approaches to depict the world before and after the outbreak. Panels in the current timeline feel cramped and hectic, while flashbacks allow readers a chance to catch their breath. The monster designs and the transformation sequences, where we see people succumb to the virus, are unsettling. Thiago Rocha's colors are excellent throughout and Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou's lettering keeps Kaplan’s script grounded and readable even when things get intense.
Only the Savage Are Left #1 gets a lot right for a debut issue. Kaplan constructs a moral puzzle that the story builds to, rather than just asserts. Raffaele and Rocha make the world feel real enough to dread, and Otsmane-Elhaou's lettering guides the reader through all of the chaos and emotions. Ryder is a compelling entry point into this world. He's not built for what its asking of him, and watching him reckon with that is going to bring me back to future issues.
Rating: 4.5/5
