Welcome to an all new edition of Parlay Points, the comic book blog to the ODPH Podcast! For this entry, we’re checking out a debut from Boom Studios that is guaranteed to generate some headlines on New Comic Book Day. Once Upon A Time At the End Of The World #1 by Jason Aaron, Alexandre Tefenkgi, Lee Loughridge, Nick Dragotta, Rico Renzi and AndWorld Design brings forth a tale for the ages. The concept is very unique as there are a plethora of themes all unfolding with this book….and we’re only one issue in. With so much to break down with this issue, let’s not wait anymore and dive right in, shall we?

Once Upon A Time At the End Of The World #1 - On Sale November 23rd, 2022
Creative: Jason Aaron, Alexandre Tefenkgi, Lee Loughridge, Nick Dragotta, Rico Renzi and AndWorld Design (Cover: Mike Del Mundo)
Credit: Boom Studios

*** POSSIBLE SPOILER WARNING ***

This issue opens up with a young girl named Mezzy paddling her way thru an apocalyptic wasteland. The scene is dark and depressing. The water is overrun with wreckage and metal. How can one survive in this world? Mezzy appears to have run out of food and is barely hanging on with the rough environment she’s trying to survive in. After sailing thru the flooded streets, Mezzy’s boat springs a leak and starts to sink, forcing an abrupt run into a bulding. However, Mezzy will find out very soon that the building is not abandoned as she thought.

An alarm is triggered and it awakens Maceo, a young boy whos watching Mezzy, which Maceo refers to as a “Acid Swamper.” fight a sea creature. This doesn’t appear to be the first time Mezzy has encountered such a being but handles the situation as best she can. Mezzy fights it off but not without Maceo shooting at the creature with a makeshift “boom” weapon of bowling balls. From here, the pair finally meet with Maceo and his homemade “armor” which Mezzy quickly dismembers. Mezzy starts shaking down Maceo for information. Readers witness that Maceo has been alone but is thriving on his own in the abysmal landscape. It’s almost a perfect utopia to what’s has happened to the world. However, when something seems too good to be true, it most likely is in a catastrophic world.

What is the truth behind Maceo’s situation? How will Mezzy move forward from this encounter? Readers get these answers plus more questions raised with a final sequence of events that will have fans clamoring for the next chapter asap!

Phenomenal first issue. Aaron introduces readers to a whole new world with two very different leads as their guides. Mezzy’s story comes from a view point of someone who simply survives no matter what. The world she lives in has made her cold and ultimately brash to anyone she encounters. On the flip side, Maceo carries true optimism of meeting someone new and being ready to move on from his ordeal. Aaron slides in a great twist on Maceo’s story once the layers are peeled back with will surprise. The pair are complete opposites in every way but their pairing creates a fascinating dynamic. It balances off the world they live in. The scenes that will most surprise are the final moments of the book. Seeing how the story progresses there will be a fun journey to follow along.

Tefenkgi shows off a very disturbing world plagued from something that devastated it. The imagery is very bleak and brings the struggle to make it day to day to the forefront. Mezzy’s encounter with the sea creature demonstrates how unraveled this world is. Seeing how standoff-ish Mezzy is to Maceo from their initial encounter reflects the world they live in. The biggest variable to this world is how Maceo comes across on panel. He appears to be kept away from the worst of this world while being home in the tower. This idea gets taken down a few notches when a reveal happens later in the issue that shows how he had been coping with the environment. Once readers hit the final pages of this chapter, they will be locked in on the adventure that lies ahead.

Final Point: Aaron, Tefenkgi, and the creative team usher in a story that takes readers on a trip ranging from hopelessness to blind optimism while two people try finding a way to prosper in an unforgiving place. Maceo and Mezzy are a reluctant pairing but one of huge potential to carry this incredible story. OUATATEOFW is one book to keep an eye out for when you hit the local comic shops this week.

Hit me up on Twitter and let me know what you thought of ONCE UPON A TIME AT THE END OF THE WORLD #1. Thanks for reading!