Masterminds #1 Review—Squid Games meets the video game industry

Masterminds immediately drew me in by the relatability of its initial premise. After all, what creative hasn’t dreamed of one day managing to find success in their art, only to wind up stuck in a job that’s, at best, kind of in their field without providing fulfillment, and, at worst, found themselves doing something not even remotely close to what they love? How many have whiled the hours and days away hoping for that big break that will finally allow them to do what they’re passionate about, slowly growing more and more frustrated as that likelihood seems increasingly bleak? If that’s you, then you’ll undoubtedly be able to relate to Edward immediately, though that’s not to say that one has to be a struggling creative in order to relate to him. Anyone that’s found themselves stuck in a job where they feel eternally unappreciated or overlooked is bound to be able to see themselves in Edward. Nothing like an easily relatable character to draw readers in, right?

But Masterminds doesn’t rely on relatability alone to keep readers invested. Just when Edward is about at his lowest, the story presents us with the first taste of what’s to come as he’s presented with a puzzle courtesy of the mysterious group known as the Masterminds. The eponymous group is said to be incredibly old, consisting of games masters of all kinds over the ages. Edward solves this first puzzle, but more await him if he hopes to earn his place amongst these unknown masters. 

Handling the artwork for Masterminds is Stephen Thompson (Clive Barker’s Hellraiser, Die Hard: Year One), whose intricately detailed illustrations bring this game of intrigue to life. From the opening panels to the final cliffhanger, Thompson’s realistic style helps make the story feel less like ink on paper (or pixels on a screen) and more like a show that’s playing out before us. You can feel Edward’s frustration even if you can’t hear him shouting, see his disappointment without even seeing his face, and sense his excitement as the story progresses and he finds himself pulled deeper into this mysterious world. 

The only complaint I have with the comic—and even then, complaint may be too strong of a word here— is that it makes fairly frequent use of larger panels that extend across two pages. This won’t be an issue if you’re reading a physical copy, but for digital it can make it a bit difficult to track the dialogue at some points if—like me— you’re reading it on a desktop that only displays one page at a time. Again, this is a minor issue, and not one that takes away from the quality of the story by any means. 

Overall, Masterminds #1 sets up an exciting story that I look forward to seeing unfold in the months to come. 

Masterminds #1 is available now from Dark Horse Comics.

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