COMICS - Darren Davis’ creation of the new comic Lost Raven is a great addition to any comic-book enthusiast’s collection, especially given it’s profound messaging within brilliantly animated pages.
Think Gilligan’s Island-meets-tropical-Terminator, a sci-fi story of Zak Raven, a high-powered attorney who has just found out that he is HIV-positive (subtext: HIV can infect anyone) and sets sail on the high seas to find himself.
Though Davis has said he has deliberately kept Raven’s sexuality vague “for the purpose of both straight people and gay people (to) get something out of it” (and again: HIV can infect anyone), he has Raven explore hard questions so similar to the ones I as a gay man asked myself when I learned I was HIV-positive. Should I go on medication, or wait? Should I tell my family? What about sex? Will anyone want to have sex with me?
Soon Raven is shipwrecked on a deserted island, which, it turns out isn’t deserted at all.
The island’s inhabitants, creatures resulting from scientific experiments, turn out to be highly relatable to Zak, everyone there feeling isolated, alone, targeted and different, more HIV/AIDS subtext coming alive in a way I would never expect from a comic book. In fact, in all my years of HIV/AIDS activism I have never seen anything like this, using a comic book to capture someone’s attention as far as HIV is concerned is a great, different idea.
Brilliantly done. I can’t wait for the next issue and urge anyone who wants a great lighthearted read yet one with a deeply ingrained message to pick up a copy.
