The Ghost Machine special issue that hit the shelves in January 2024 offers more than new insight into The Unnamed Universe’s characters Geiger, Redcoat, and Junkyard Joe. It also offers a new character, Rook, a farmer-turned-hero, who must save the planet Exodus from ruin.
Introducing New Unnamed Heroes
Hailed as a sprawling science-fiction epic, the Rook story begins in the Ghost Machine special issue, introducing the character, his home planet, and the humans called Wardens, who once ruled it. This prequel to Rook: Exodus, which debuts its number one issue on April 3, 2024, sets up the backstory to the new series.
Although Ghost Machine features stories that move forward the characters introduced in Geiger, the Rook prequel in the special issue doesn’t reveal how Rook figures into those stories. Only following the new storyline provides that insight, doled out when The Unnamed Universe’s original creators, writer Geoff Johns, and artist Gary Frank, see fit.
Fast Facts on Rook
So, what do we know about Rook?
- The six-page prequel to the series, Rook: Exodus, teases some knowledge but provides some tidbits outright. The story comes from a partnership between Johns and Jason Fabok.
- Rook originally hails from Earth but relocated to Exodus to start a new life. Although he started out as a farmer, Rook underwent a career change while on his adopted planet when he earned the title of Warden.
- The term Warden refers to a human who wears a helmet that provides mind-control technology. This allows the Warden to control the animal species of Exodus.
- The planet Exodus required terraforming to make it amenable to human life. Much of its environment requires machine management.
- Rook decides he wants to return to Earth but lacks the parts to repair a spaceship. He loses his chance to leave when evil forces take over the planet, but his determination leads him to try to save his adopted home world.
Rather than providing a full-scale story, the six pages of Rook’s saga in Ghost Machine introduce the character and his plight while encouraging the reader to follow his story in the upcoming series, Rook: Exodus.
Other Ghost Machine Stories
Although Rook became the first of the new Unnamed Heroes to receive a comic book series, the special issue of Ghost Machine does offer many other stories. The 64-page comic details two family odysseys – that of the Rocketfellers and one about the Hornsby and Halo clans. It furthers the Geiger storyline in The Unnamed while providing readers with a tale of horror in Hyde Street. Whether you already read the stories of The Unnamed or want something new to peruse, the Ghost Machine special issue offers an ideal starting point.
