gen:LOCK #1 is an animated web series created by Gray Haddock and produced by Rooster Teeth that has been adapted into a comic series published by DC Comics. The comic series is written by Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing with pencils by Carlo Barberi, inks by Walden Wong, and colors by Protobunker.
If you know anything about Rooster Teeth, you know they are super into video games and anime. You can definitely tell in the show and in this comic as well that those influences are prevalent with gen:LOCK #1 having aspects of Gundam but also with a touch of influence from shows like Voltron and Power Rangers.
In classic mech-themed series style, Earth is at war (seriously, almost every anime or game or movie involving a crew with giant robots involves Earth at war). In this universe, there is a looming, villainous faction known as “the Union”, which has been gradually taking over more and more of the planet after initiating the Global Culture War. In an effort to sway the tides of war, the opposing faction, “the Polity”, turns to a Dr. Weller, the scientist behind gen:Lock tech. Dr. Weller has a team of five (of course) individuals who are “gen:Lock” compatible, which basically means they’re special and can transfer their consciousness into mech suits that are called “Holons”.
The comic series, which is set to be 7 issues long, takes place following the first season, so if you haven’t seen it, you may want to avoid the comic and this review because it will contain spoilers.
Dr. Weller is dead. His loss leaves Julian Chase and his team to pick up the pieces of their lives on their own, but the world is still at war and there’s not time to dwell in grief. Much to Kazu’s dismay, the team must go to Japan to fight off a Union force that has put the area into a blockade. It’s not just Kazu against the mission, but Vanguard has also issued orders for gen:Lock not to interfere. But as we know, groups of young heroes are notoriously bad at following orders. Chase also receives a mysterious message while in a virtual video game with Cammie, leading to more motivation to investigate what’s going on with this Union siege.
Just like with RWBY, the creative team taking on this series seems to have a good understanding of the characters and their stories. It gives a brief recap at the beginning with just enough information to set the stage without wasting time summing up an entire season of content. It establishes each character and their personalities along with launching a new arc and even though they aren’t in their Holons until the tail end of the issue, its clear issue #2 is going to be action packed and if there’s one thing I love, it’s a good giant robot fight.
OVERALL SCORE: 8 / 10
Make sure you pick up a copy of gen:LOCK #1 from your local comic shop!
Happy reading!
