ESCAPE Vol. 1
Creative Team
writer: RICK REMENDER
artist/colorist: DANIEL ACUÑA
letterer: RUS WOOTON
publisher: IMAGE COMICS
War changes people.
This is the lesson bomber pilot Milton Shaw is about to learn when his plane is shot out of the sky, leaving him stranded alone in enemy territory, among the ruins of the city he just partially annihilated. He has 24 hours to escape before his own side comes back to finish the job.
This is ESCAPE, a riveting story written by Rick Remender, joined by artist and colorist Daniel Acuña and letterer Rus Wooton.
Back in August 2025, we described the debut issue as "powerful" and "epic" and now that Image Comics has released the first trade paperback collecting issues #1 - 6, we can finally say that Escape has delivered on its promise.
ESCAPE is not a story about war.
The reason why Escape exists is revealed by Remender himself at the end of issue #1. He shares that his grandfather was a pilot who served during World War II and was given methamphetamines to stay alert for insanely long periods of time. The experience scarred him for life, and when he returned home, he brought back not only the horrors of war but also violence and abuse. Those wounds echoed through generations, profoundly affecting both Remender's father and, ultimately, Rick himself.
ESCAPE, however, is not a story meant to idolize Remender's grandfather or to say what’s right or wrong. Instead, it is a journey through pain, sacrifice, and redemption that explores how far a person is willing to go to survive and protect the people they love.
“A Hard Rain’s A‐Gonna Fall”
There are several aspects of this first volume that really stuck with me.
First, Remender does absolutely nothing to soften the brutality of war. Bombs destroy, and shotguns kill. That's it. There is no glamour or heroism but only the devastating consequences of violence.
Yet, even when everything seems lost and there appears to be no escape, Milton finds unexpected help. A civilian whose home was spared by Milton's bombs helps him hide from the soldiers searching for him. It's a powerful message of mercy disguised beneath the relentless action. Like Bob Dylan's A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall, Escape acknowledges the horrors humanity is capable of while reminding us that compassion can still survive amid the devastation.
Another aspect that stands out is Daniel Acuña's artwork. The Spanish comic book artist follows Remender's lead by translating those horrors into images with remarkable honesty. His gritty, heavy linework, combined with a dark and muted color palette, creates a constant sense of tension, allowing the reader to almost feel Milton's panic and his desperate urgency to find a way out.
What's also particularly interesting is how Acuña's color palette shifts during the flashback scenes. The dark, oppressive tones give way to brighter, cleaner colors, creating a striking contrast with the present-day narrative. The change doesn't just help distinguish different timelines but it also reflects a world untouched by the horrors of war, making Milton's current situation feel even more tragic.
A comic book you cannot escape from.
Despite still being an ongoing series, ESCAPE by Rick Remender and Daniel Acuña has already left its mark on the Image Comics lineup with a riveting story that, beneath the surface of a survival war tale, delivers a powerful message about how war changes people and how its consequences reach far beyond those who fight it.
