Yahoo News John Ridley Debuts Sci-Fi Thriller ‘The Ministry of Compliance’
John Ridley is putting his own spin on the alien invasion genre with Ministry of Compliance, an upcoming sci-fi thriller for comic book publisher IDW.
Ridley, an Eisner nominee for The Other History of the DC Universe and an Oscar nominee for penning 12 Years a Slave, teams with artist Stefano Raffaele on the book. The duo are also behind DC’s GCPD: The Blue Wall, and The Hollywood Reporter has a first-look at the series.
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The Ministry of Compliance takes place thirty seven years after Earth was secretly invaded by an alien force called the Devolution, which has been shaping humanity in preparation for our assimilation into its empire. The thirteen ministries of the Devolution are responsible for manipulating different aspects of human life, with the Ministry of Compliance being the most feared. Led by Avigail Senna, the Ministry of Compliance ensures all ministries stay in line and focus on the larger mission. As Earth stands on the verge of assimilation, things start to go very wrong, and Avigail must deal with a conspiracy head-on.
“I’ve been real fortunate to have had many ‘phases’ in my career, from starting out writing on The Martin Show all the way up to 12 Years and everything that flowed from it. But there’s always going to be part of me which is the kid who fell in love with storytelling by way of comic books. And to be real this is the craft that brings me the most joy,” Ridley said in a statement.
The creative team also includes colorist Brad Anderson and letterer Ariana Maher. Main covers are by Raffaele & Anderson, with variant covers by Ryan Sook, with more to be announced.
For Ridley, the aliens at the heart of the series have a surprising amount to say about humanity, and he has a special place for its three leads.
“The trio of Avigail, Quinn and Kingsley are easily my three favorite characters in thirty-plus years of creating. And, yeah, in the series there’s a lot of literal and figurative backstabbing and heads rolling as the three quietly lead the charge to take over all of Earth, which is quite the chore… The Ministry of Compliance, however, is really about these three trying to figure out who they are, and what they mean to each other which are the basics of human nature,” said Ridley. “Sometimes it takes ‘aliens’ to show us a little something about ourselves.”
The Ministry of Compliance No. 1 arrives in stores Nov. 15. Read on for a preview.
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