Maybe some of you were in the Inner Harbor last month for Comic-Con and saw the people in classic comic book costumes wandering the area. Among these people is one of our own Greyhounds, Loyola graduate Skip Winter. Back in the early 90s when he was a Loyola undergraduate, it never occurred to him that he would someday create and own an indy comic book. Creator Skip Winter said, “It feels like a homecoming for me! This [was] the first of three Comic Con’s we’ll be attending this year, which include the Granite State Comic Con and the New York Comic con. Needless to say we’re pretty excited.”
The comic book, Unit 5 features five heroes who come together after every one of their lives are impacted by the September 11 terrorist attacks. The creators describe the premise as “Five extraordinary individuals hailing from the 5 boroughs of New York who have suffered personal losses due to the 9/11 attacks join together to fight global terror and are known as Unit 5! September 11th 2001 was an ominous day in U.S history. However, it became the turning point in the fight against global terror. Founded by the G Foundation and born out of the personal tragedies of extraordinary individuals all with deep ties to ground zero, Unit 5 was born.”
I am not a big comic book fan but even I could tell that this was a good comic book. It has a strong premise and its storytelling style is exactly the way a comic book should be. I only read the pilot issue which has to spend a great deal of time finding itself. The first issue of anything indicates the greatness that is to come but struggles because there is no history of which to be based on. Winter has taken on the writing responsibilities and has solid style. Each character drives a flashy car that seems to be an extension of the character himself allowing the vehicle to speak as well as the characters. I do not want to do it a disservice by reviewing it too harshly so I invite anyone who is interested to email us in order to procure the first issue and judge the comic.
Currently the comic is carried by 50 comic book retailers but with the great reviews, the comic promise to expand its brand. Toys, movies, and a cartoon have all been thrown around as possible ideas. As issue 3 is about to launch, you still have time to join the “Unit 5 Army” and catch up on past issues because this has the potential to be the next big thing for the comic book world.
I often wonder what Loyola graduates do after graduation. Not everyone does something that the Career Center will be highlighting in those weekly job posting emails. Skip Winter seems to have followed him passion and creating a comic book using some of the skills he gained here in writing classes. It is cool to have something tangible that a graduate created and I encourage any comic book lovers to get the first issue and follow this upcoming comic book series.