A press release from Sea Lion Books:
The world of Pariah, is our world. Creators Aron Warner (Cirque 3D, Beasts of Burden), Brett Weldele (The Surrogates), and Philip Gelatt (Labor Days), set Pariah in the year 2025. A handful of extraordinary teenagers have developed rapidly increased intelligence as a side-effect of an experimental in vitro medicine. Known as “Vitro’s,” the teen geniuses are pushed to the fringes of society, feared by the public, and eyed with suspicion even by their own friends and families. When an explosion at a government laboratory that employs Vitros to work on advanced weapons and space-technology causes a deadly virus to escape, the Vitros are blamed for the incident. Teenage Vitros around the globe are systematically rounded up, stripped of their rights, and declared terrorists by the world community. With Black Ops hot on their trail, the Vitros must band together and decide: flight or fight? As if being a teenager didn’t suck enough.
The scripts penned by writer Philip Gelatt capture the atmosphere of a paranoid society seen through the eyes of the misunderstood Vitros. A reviewer from The Student Review remarked, “Hats off to writer Philip Gelatt and creator Aron Warner for creating such a well-told tale.”
The tone of the series is complemented by the illustrative subtlety of artist Brett Weldele. A reviewer from the Fantasy Book Review says, “The artwork is nice: stark and simple, adding to the feeling of isolation.” Another reviewer from Open Book Society says, “The artist captured the teens’ facial expressions perfectly… I found myself studying each page. They’re very detailed and interesting.”
The first four issues of Pariah will focus on individual stories. The reader will be introduced to a few of the key players in each issue, picking up clues and insights as to what’s to come. Some Vitros are tech wiz’, others, bio-chemists. One has the ability to read human behavior patterns to the degree that he can manipulate people to nefarious conclusions. By Pariah vol. 1 no. 4 all the remaining Vitros will be gathered together to decide the course of their fate, and perhaps the fate of all humanity…