Victor LaValle first captured my attention with his 2016 Shirley Jackson Award winning horror novella The Ballad of Black Tom. It absolutely enthralled me: a retelling of Lovecraft’s “The Horror at Red Hook” that deftly compares racism to the cosmic horrors using the Lovecraftian theme of the horrors’ indifference to the lives they destroy, turning Lovecraft’s own racism on its head. I knew that I had to pay close attention to anything else he put out.

The promotional image, and eventual cover of Issue 1, which drew me into this world. Illustrated by Ario Anindito.

Fast forward to two months ago when LaValle teased the promotional image for his latest comic, EVE. It featured a young Black girl on a makeshift raft using a stop sign as a paddle, a teddy bear gripping to her as they look afar, and a sunken ruined city in the background. This image was illustrated beautifully by Ario Anindito, and it dripped heavily of Kamandi: The Last Boy on Earth energy. I knew I was sold.

In the first issue, we’re introduced to an inquisitive, energetic, funny, 11-year-old girl, Eve, and her android-disguised-as-a-teddy-bear companion, Wexler… as well as the world they’re in – a world ravaged by climate change. Eve is as new to this world as we are, having spent her life in a virtual reality with her father – a father who is no longer around. All we know is that the sea levels have risen and that Eve apparently can help save the world, if she has the courage.

Throughout the first issue (published by BOOM! Comics), the Kamandi vibe I got from the cover lingered. It’s littered with postapocalyptic story tropes, but I definitely don’t hold that against the storytelling team. In fact, I celebrate them for it. This is a hard story for us to hear, the story of our own destruction and how we got there. It seems LaValle wants to paint the story using a brush we’re very familiar with so we’ll be ready to hear it. The biggest difference between Eve’s story and the more classic stories like Kamandi is Eve herself: the fact that she’s a Black girl.

Variant Cover by Mirka Andolfo

The comic came with a mission statement from LaValle on the project and the reasoning is very clear: the climate crisis is going to affect our children. As a father of three, this knowledge haunts me every time I think about what kind of world they’ll inherit.

But none are going to take the brunt of that crisis more than Black and Brown children. From his home in Washington Heights, New York, he’s watched Black and Brown communities receive the least protection during the COVID-19 pandemic, even when many were on the frontlines of combating the virus. It felt like a precursor to what was to come.

I also need to gush on the beautiful world illustrated by Jo Mi-Gyeong and colored by Brittany Peer. It’s a visually stunning world, a drastic change from contemporary postapoc stories that rely on desaturated, drab worlds. This is a world that still has color and seems to have moved on in spite of humanity instead of ending because of it. The first issue doesn’t stray far from home, so it leaves me excited to see what else this team has in store for us to see over Eve’s journey.

In the end, I can’t wait to pick up the next issue. In fact, this feels like the kind of comic to get two copies of: one to keep reading, and one to give to people who also need to read this story. Do yourself a favor and check it out.