‘Aides, as it was once known, was a remote backwater, but it was “blessed” with rich deposits of a rare non-earth mineral coveted by the empire. It was also a safe space to sequester scientific facilities, especially those that might engage in dangerous experiments. Consequently, the planet had a large working-class population and a small but highly educated middle class that ultimately joined together to declare independence from the Empire.
Whatever you call the planet, they also benefited from an extremely charismatic military commander, Oliver Gracchon. However, instead of leading the planet through their early days of sovereignty, he retires like Cincinnatus, placing his trust and the people’s fate in the hands of the Freedom Guard. And then he gets himself kidnapped—presumably at the Empire’s behest.
Right now, you’re probably wondering about the planet’s annual GDP and trade deficit numbers. If so, Sitterson has you covered. To his credit, he takes world-building seriously. Nevertheless, the regular data-dumps and detailed ethnographic extracts often represent way too much of a good thing.
Sitterson still has identifiable characters, which is a blessing. However, their personas ae often defined by their demographic. For instance, there are two “machinist” clerics of the Teomekhean faith, orthodox and reformed, whose primary role is illustrating religious schisms. There is also the mixed human-robot relationship, which is awkwardly strained, because Commander Gloria Sunandez is ashamed to be publicly associated with Talun, in a romantic context.
It is a shame, because Daugherty’s art is spectacular. The detailed astronomical art is striking, while the bright colors pop off the page. The inventive layout design is also distinctive (but sometimes frustrating, at least if you’re reading Free Planet digitally). It looks great, but Free Planet lacks the pacing and balance to recommend, now that the first bind-up is on-sale at book and comic retailers.
