‘Blue Book Volume 1: 1961’ Review – A Creepy Nonfiction Comic in Need of Taking Creative Liberties

Everyone loves true crime documentaries right now. There’s something endlessly appealing about investigating the strange, macabre, and potentially paranormal. Yet, it feels like mainstream comics hardly tackle these subjects outside of horror and science fiction. So, James Tynion IV and Michael Avon Oeming’s Blue Book: 1961, a comic that takes some of the most famous “true” UFO stories and turns them into a series of nonfiction graphic novels, seems like a home run, right? And in some ways it is; but in other ways, it falls a bit short.

Reality Meets (Science) Fiction

Retelling one of the most famous alien abductions of all time, Blue Book: 1961 explores the story of Betty and Barney Hill. In 1961, the couple reportedly got abducted by aliens while traveling home from a vacation in Canada. Or so the story goes. The way Tynion approaches this story proves quite interesting. At first, he follows the Hills as they’d have experienced the event. Driving along the countryside, seeing something weird in the sky, losing a bit of time, and eventually arriving home hours later than they should’ve with more questions than answers and a host of unresolved trauma.

But as the book progresses, and the Hills see a hypnotist who helps them unlock their repressed memories, things swerve closer to the realm of science fiction. Tynion takes us onboard the UFO with the Hills, fully exploring the nooks and crannies of their story. Why were they abducted? What did the aliens want with them? All questions the Hills’ hypnotherapy sessions answer – if you’re willing to believe it. The nice thing is that it never feels like Tynion takes a stance on the truthfulness of the Hills’ story. And that adherence to neutrality is admirable. Tynion tells their story with no judgment and little embellishment. Just the facts, as they’ve been presented.

An Adaptation in Need of Creative Liberties

That being said, that’s also where the book stumbles a bit. Blue Book‘s biggest problem is that the story lacks some much-needed dramatization. It’s not that whole scenes and events need to be made up, or anything. Rather, most of the story is told by an omniscient narrator, so it’s very prose-heavy, almost like reading a report. An entertaining, well-written report, to be sure. But a report nonetheless. And it doesn’t entirely feel like Tynion takes full advantage of the graphic novel medium here – except, perhaps, for the parts of the book that detail the Hills’ repressed memories. There’s nothing inherently wrong with this approach. In fact, it’s one of the things that makes Blue Book feel unique. But it’s hard to avoid wishing Tynion had taken a few creative liberties here and there. Just a little touch of something.

Breathtaking Artwork

On the other hand, Oeming’s artwork does a lot of the heavy lifting. He focuses on the emotion of the story. Lots of quiet moments and close-ups of Betty and Barney’s faces. His work in the latter half of the book, where we see the Hills’ repressed memories aboard the UFO, is quite breathtaking, too. He dives headfirst into classic sci-fi territory – with very retro designs for both the UFO and the aliens. And that mishmash of very grounded, character work and classic sci-fi imagery makes for quite a satisfying read. His use of color only adds to this enjoyable mishmash. Most of the art is done in various shades of blue, which add to both the mystery of the story and to the inherent melancholy of the Hills’ experience. If you’re on the fence about reading Blue Book, Oeming’s artwork is easily worth the price of admission.

Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, Blue Book: 1961 proves enjoyable while also feeling a bit ho-hum. It’s very faithful to the Hills’ story, to be sure. But that faithfulness acts as a bit of a double-edged sword as it doesn’t feel like Tynion has anything new to say here. He offers a faithful look at their experience, but little else. The artwork, on the other hand, makes the story come startlingly alive. It’s gorgeous to look at, deeply atmospheric, and keeps things moving briskly. If you’re at all interested in the subject of UFOs, and you’re not super familiar with Betty and Barney Hill, then Blue Book: 1961 is well worth a read. If you’re not, your mileage may vary.

Blue Book Volume 1: 1961 is available now in paperback and ebook formats from Dark Horse Comics.

DISCLAIMER: A review copy of Blue Book Volume 1: 1961 was provided by Dark Horse Comics and Edelweiss+. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.