Southern Cross
Take a trip to Titan
Release Date: OUT NOW!
Publisher: Image Comics Writer: Becky Cloonan Artist: Andy Belanger
Making the leap
from drawing comics to writing them doesn’t always go smoothly, but acclaimed artist Becky Cloonan is already on her way to proving her mettle as a scripter. Following up her wellcrafted self- published comics like The Mire, and her co- writing gig on DC’s fantastic Gotham Academy, she’s also tackling solo writing duties on Southern Cross, a creator- owned title from Image that’s turning out to be a fascinating and atmospheric sci- fi thriller.
The story follows Alex Braith, a woman who’s heading to Saturn’s moon Titan in order to recover the body of her recently deceased sister. The vehicle for her journey is the Southern Cross, a gigantic spacecraft with a crew who all hold a variety of dangerous secrets. However, as a series of weird occurrences start plaguing those onboard, it soon looks uncertain whether or not Alex will even survive the journey to Titan…
Influenced by Agatha Christie murder mysteries, issues one to four of this first six- issue arc mix hard SF with a darker, more horrific edge while also finding plenty of room to explore the varied and interesting cast of characters. There’s obviously a lot of collaboration between Cloonan and artist Andy Belanger, whose imaginative layouts and vivid imagery leaves the comic feeling like a blend of Alien and The Ballad Of Halo Jones. Sharp, edgy and gripping, it’s another great Image sci- fi title, and further proof that Cloonan is a seriously impressive comics talent. Saxon Bullock One of Cloonan’s inspirations for Southern Cross was Francis Marion Crawford’s 1886 ghost story “The Upper Berth”.