Beyond The Stars

“SMUGGLERS” The black market for exotic alien death machines is absolutely booming and Yuri Gagarin has empty pockets and a bag full of destruction. Who’s buying?

Three issues deep into “The Sun Beyond the Stars,” and this incarnation of “The Manhattan Projects” isn’t wowing me like its predecessor. Yuri and Laika’s adventure through space is wacky and entertaining, with humor aplenty in Jonathan Hickman’s script and weird, wild creativity in Nick Pitarra and Michael Garland’s art. However, the plot doesn’t feel strong enough to carry a series on its own. With no real stakes and a newly unmotivated main character, this issue just didn’t draw me in. While I’m not yet ready to give up the joy of exploring Pitarra’s zany, grotesque world every month, “The Sun Beyond the Stars” can’t quite get its hooks in me. Admittedly, part of this may be an adjustment. I really enjoyed the intertwining stories and large cast of the original, so the straightforwardness of Yuri’s journey feels emptier and slower. In the first issue, his motivation was just to find his dog; now reunited with Laika, his motive is merely survival. Survival is no small motivation