Skin Police drops you into a dark future, 2142, where not enough babies are being born. This leads to a shady business in making clone babies. But things go horribly wrong when many of these clones turn into crazy killers called "Dupes." So, the UN creates a tough group called the Skin Police to hunt them down. This setup makes for a really bloody story with lots of action.

Beyond just the violence, the story touches on some serious stuff. The desperation of people wanting kids so badly they go to illegal means, and then the awful results, makes you think about our own worries about having children and the risks of new technologies. The fact that there's a special UN police force also suggests bigger issues about how society deals with fear and control. However, the story gets a bit tangled up and hard to follow at points.

While you might expect a cool, futuristic look, the art doesn't fully deliver on that. Still, Skin Police sounds like a decent read if you're into dark, action-packed stories that make you think a bit, even if it's not perfect and the future world doesn't look as sharp as you'd hope. A 3 out of 5 solid read overall.

I picked up Skin Police because, frankly, with a title like that, how could I not?

Set in a future where people started cloning themselves to get around a fertility crisis, it turns out three out of four of these clones eventually snap and turn into hallucinating, bloodthirsty killers. Oops. Now the world needs a special task force to hunt them down, and that’s where our grim-faced protagonist, Agent Eckis, comes in - part Judge Dredd, part grumpy man who’s seen too much. He’s teamed up with a rookie, and together they shoot their way through conspiracies, moral dilemmas, and some very bad days at the office.

It’s stylish, chaotic, and smarter than it first appears. The art is gorgeous and gritty, the colors pop, and when the clones start “popping” too, it’s intense.

A wild, worthwhile ride.

Set in a future of almost zero fertility, cloning, instability, and societal collapse.

Oh yes, the cloning…

It was thought that the cloning would help keep the world population stable and people thought it would be a joy to raise a little version of themselves, all really good ideas, though a bit vain.

But there was one major setback, three out of four clones would ‘pop’ and turn into hallucinating blood thirsty killers.

The United Nations of Europe, a one-party superstate with some nods toward the Mega Cities of the Dredd world, has come up with a solution, total eradication. But after societal upset and collapse with records going astray and a lot of the ‘Dupes’ being procured on the black market this is difficult.

In comes Eckis, a very Dredd-style character with his Andersen rookie along for the ride, and it is such a ride. Future tech, traitors, underground resistance, government conspiracies, and an enforcement agency with a shoot now… no questions later attitude.

The art style is nice and graphic with lots of reds and bright colours often at odds with the world we find ourselves in, the internal ‘thoughts’ of the dupes who pop are excellent and imaginative, there are a couple of subplots running through to humanize the main characters, and the ending of Volume 1 is a great reveal!

Another great offering from Oni Press and I’m looking forward to the rest of this coming out.

I received this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Prepare to POP out of your seats for great science fiction!

Oni Press knows that their readers love disturbing and disastrous science fiction! Skin Police proves that they are giving their readers exactly what they want. Set in the future where genetic offspring are both a political tool and outlawed, this story is a blood-fueled fever dream that I could not put down!

Jordan Thomas & Daniel Gete are absolutely artists on the rise, this is a terrifying story that doesn’t honestly feel too far off from where we are headed as a society. It’s the perfect encapsulation of science fiction and this duo are exceptionally talented! I cannot wait to see where this series goes! Check it out!