Review Category: Comic Books

Blue Fox comics produce some of the most visually impressive and narratively interesting books in the indie comic book scene today. Previous books on their list include Gone, a haunting tale of loss and supernatural horror tale Hexes: The Boy Who Came Closer. It’s easy to describe these books as art, because that’s exactly what they are. Visually impressive works that also happen to tell a story.

Their latest offering is called Robyn, which is pitched as a gender-flipped take on Robin Hood. Like most elevator pitches however, it falls substantially short of what’s actually going on here. Robyn is a riff on a traditional tale, but it’s also much more than that.

Firstly, the gender of the lead protagonist isn’t a gimmick. The character isn’t overly sexualised, there’s no cheesy ‘woman doing a man’s job’ approach or any of that nonsense.  What we have is a young person who lives in a medieval world trying to be the best by their own conscience. She is aided by her friend Tuck, who is a mysterious monk, rather than a jolly fat bloke who likes eating lots of food. We also meet what first appears to be a gender flipped Marian, but is actually another important part of the Robin Hood lore. It’s a clever turn around.

Ege Avci’s artwork is nothing short of gorgeous. Robin Hood is traditionally seen as a bit of a pagan parable, with a lots of greenery and a nature sensibility. This tends to be thrown in with themes of rebellion to create something bright, brash and loud. Robyn is different, of course. The book is mostly soft autumn colours, with the palette subtly changing to indicate mood and theme to the reader.

The layout is also splendidly well done. The pacing is superb and each panel is designed to catch the eye in a specific way, making the storytelling feel both epic and effortless. Character design is clever and careful. Robyn herself is both terrifying and yet the picture of innocence. Friar Tuck is decidedly dodgy and appropriately gothic, and the rest of the supporting cast add to the mythic, gritty and yet fairytale feel of the book.

Overall, this is a comic which embodies the fine traditions of British Indie comics. It takes an old idea and makes it new. It subverts our expectations and demands that we re-think our assumptions, and it does all this with its tongue rammed ever so slightly in its cheek. It’s clever, it’s witty and it steps into the world of the strange without even blinking. It’s of the quality we come to expect from the likes of 2000AD, and is a fine example of the amazing work you can find in the modern indie scene.

Robyn is a fine example of the future of comics.

Robyn will be available of the Blue Fox website and at all good comic conventions and the classier sort of comic shop. Blue Fox are also doing an online crowd-funder for the book (which is pretty standard these days) and you should check them out to find out more.

ROBYN (ISSUE ONE) / WRITER: SIMON BIRKS / ARTIST: EGE AVCI / LETTERER: LYNDON WHITE / PUBLISHER: BLUE FOX COMICS / RELEASE DATE: EARLY 2017

One of the interesting challenges that fledgeling comic book creators face is that people tend to underestimate exactly how hard it is to produce sequential art.  It’s a process that involves many, many revisions, re-drafts and more revisions, and making a single 24-page book is a daunting task, especially if you don’t have much in the way of time and resources.

So it’s safe to say that even the most humble indie comic book is a remarkable achievement. There also tends to be a large gap between issues of books, because quality takes time. Jon Laight and Phillip Knibbs’ odd sort of superhero book, Brethren Born, is an interesting example of how time improves talent.

So far there are only two books in the series (with more planned). Issue one starts in the modern day with a super-human vigilante running around the streets beating up criminals. We then flashback to a mysterious laboratory, where a young man called Newton seems imprisoned. The lad is trying to escape what appears to be a rather sticky fate. Layers of mystery are added and overall it’s a decent (if not terribly original) tale of superhuman shenanigans and government conspiracy. The pacing, however, is slightly off and the art is not as clean as it needs to be.

By issue two, however, things have greatly improved. Writer Jon Laight has learned to pace his tale more smoothly and the dialogue is much better, if slightly stilted in places. Artist Phillip Knibbs delivers a far, far smoother style this time round and an inker (Luca Cicchitti), colourist (Santiago Ramos) and letterer (Rob Jones) have been added to the production process. The extra talent is visible on every page; issue two is a lovely thing.

As a side note, we have to applaud the addition of a letterer. In these terrible times of comic sans, it’s good to see that an actual human being is in charge of the lettering. A good font-monkey is a rare and precious thing in indie comics and it looks like the Brethren Born have somehow nabbed one for themselves.

The story also improves; Laight continues with a disjointed storytelling motif and we can begin to see that this is a riff on standard superhero fare.

Brethren Born is an interesting sort of project. No individual element of the book is anything special. The writing is okay. The art is good but not great. The plot isn’t anything new and yet; combine all these pieces together you get a book that really works.

Issue three of Brethren Born is currently seeking crowdfunding, which is pretty standard practice for indie comics these days. It will be interesting to see where the team goes next with the book; given the impressive difference in quality from book one into book two, we suspect that much like it’s lead character, it’s going to continue to evolve into something rather impressive.

BRETHREN BORN ISSUES 1 & 2 / WRITER: JON LAIGHT / ARTIST: PHILLIP KNIBBS / PUBLISHER: LEVEL-8 COMICS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

One of the toughest things to do in the world of storytelling is to produce something that both adults and children can not only enjoy, but can find compelling and hilarious. Adults are jaded and tend to be above simplistic humour, whereas kids are new to the whole idea of Knock Knock jokes and get turned off by anything too involved.

Judd Winnick’s series of graphic novels, Hilo, gets the mix right every time and with every gag. This plot of Hilo is quite silly. Hilo is a robot boy from another dimension. He shoots lasers out his hands, is hard to destroy and is super smart. His friends, DJ and Gina are regular kids with bags of pluck and courage. Together, they help save to world from monsters.

Saving the Whole Wide World is the second book in the Hilo series and immediately picks up from the first one. (You can read them out of order and still be entertained, but reading them in order is more fun) . Hilo has survived his encounter with the monster robot Razorwark, but in reality has become weakened.

Weird monsters start appearing around Gina and DJ’s hometown, and it’s up to Hilo and his friends to get rid of the beasties, before Razorwark finds a way back to Earth. Despite this exciting sounding plot line, much of the book is taken up with Winick’s trademark anarchic humour. The characters run round trying to save the world and mostly shouting, making dumb jokes and trying not to get exploded.

Family life also plays an important part of the book and it’s sweet to see how the various brothers and sisters of the main cast respond to the utter weirdness that Hilo brings to their lives. Winnick (who is better known for his work on DC comics) brings steady pacing the comic. He also draws in a very cartoony style which enhances the sense of fun all the way through.

Hilo is great fun, is deeply silly and also has appropriate sad bits, so you claim that it’s serious art. Read it and then give it to child that you quite like so they can grow to love comics.

HILO BOOK 2: SAVING THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD / AUTHOR: JUDD WINNICK / PUBLISHER: PUFFIN / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

One of the most disturbing indie comics to emerge in recent years reaches its climax, and lives up to the standards of depravity its first two issues set for itself. The series follows teenager Cass, who is kidnapped by “Daddy,” a businessman who collects young women of various looks and ethnicities and imprisons them beneath his suburban home. After a regime of systematic abuse, Cass acts as though she has been broken, but along with the other girls begins plotting their escape.

 

After the previous deplorable events of the series you might wonder where Little Girl Black has left itself to go to maintain such heights (or, depths, depending how you look at it), but rest assured, there’s another fucked up revelation waiting to hit you before the story’s end, somehow managing to make everything just that little bit worse. Despite being a soul-crushing ordeal to read, the story also sneaks in an undercurrent of optimism, suggesting that no matter how bleak a situation may be, there is no true surrender as long as you can maintain a glimmer of hope.

 

The culmination is as much about psychological defiance as it is a physical fight back, as Cass’ refusal to allow herself to be beaten into meek compliance is what keeps her going in spite of everything she has been subjected to. Her indomitable will inspires the others to join her despite the potential repercussions, and the unspoken bond forged of their suffering binds them together in their eventual fate, whichever result ultimately comes to pass.

 

Mesmerising like a car crash, as the comic forces you to endure the torments it inflicts upon it characters, reading it becomes akin to a bout of emotional masochism. In the end, when everything is over, you feel a weight is lifted by emerging from reading the thing with your sanity intact, something you become conscious of almost as much as you care about the girls making their eventual escape and evil receiving its due punishment. Little Girl Black might have been a very short series, but its blunt force impact is in no way lessened as a result.

 

LITTLE GIRL BLACK #3 / AUTHOR: JAMES MCCULLOCH / ARTIST: PEDRO MENDES / PUBLISHER: COMICHAUS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

 

After being possessed by the spirit of Nebetah, trafficked and abused young woman Angel escaped onto the streets of London. The Sect of Anubis are desperate to get her back because if they don’t, Ammit, the demon dog devourer of souls, will kill them all. When we last left her, Angel had briefly found her way to the Sect’s rivals the Pyramid Club, where youngest member Duncan had promised he could help her, before the Sect performed a prayer to compel Nebetah to return to them.

 

This issue kicks off with a flashback to 1880 that shows how the wealthy white men of the Sect came to learn about the blood-drinking ritual that has granted them immortality. In Luxor, they discover a still-youthful Kharis (who last issue had been shown betraying his former lover Nebetah so that he could gain immortality) and steal his secret.

 

Writer Peter Milligan continues to develop themes that ran through the previous two issues. The Sect might not have aged, but they are still a group of old, bigoted men who believe other cultures only exist to provide them with what they need. Their racism is nicely marked out in the opening scenes and their use of slavery, prostitution and other sinister schemes to fund the Sect is appropriate. That said, the Pyramid Club (who split from the Sect decades ago in order to stop them) are no better. To them Angel is a means to an end, and they care little for what will remain of her if they are successful. For both, women and the ceremonies and rituals of ‘ghastly’ other cultures are simply tools to be used.

 

As circumstances grow ever more desperate for all involved, dangerous choices are made that unleash even greater evils into the world. Milligan’s storytelling advances all of these themes further here. As much as this is Angel’s story, which provides the emotional core, it’s also arguably as much about men who perceive their place in the world as disappearing doing whatever they can to hold onto their positions and power, and the political slant gives the story some wider depth and relevance. The art and colour continue to tell the story well and brings the myth of Egypt alive in modern London.

 

At the end of this issue, Hammer historian Marcus Hearn also continues his welcome look back over the studio’s related movies, this time focusing on The Mummy’s Shroud.

 

THE MUMMY #3 / WRITER: PETER MILLIGAN / ARTIST: RONILSON FREIRE / PUBLISHER: TITAN / RELEASE DATE: 25TH JANUARY

 

It’s always been a big regret for fans that Christopher Eccleston made just 12 episodes as the ninth incarnation of the Doctor. Thanks to the folks at Titan Comics, however, the Ninth Doctor now lives once again in his own ongoing series of timeline-hopping comic strip adventures.

 

This second volume picks up from where the first volume left off, with the Doctor, Rose and Jack travelling the universe – with the vague mission of locating any artefacts left over from the Time War and to find Jack’s missing memories (as mentioned in his debut TV story ‘The Empty Child’). As that synopsis suggests, these comics are not afraid to dabble with continuity – in fact, they are positively doused in it. In the two story arcs that comprise this collection, one sees the return of an old enemy – the Slitheen – and the other the return of an old friend (or several).

 

If this all sounds like the comics disappear up their own casual nexus then, don’t worry, writer Cavan Scott keeps things breezy and fun, with his fast-paced plotting and Russel T. Davies-esque dialogue. This trio of TARDIS travellers was always a delight on the show, and their camaraderie is well replicated here. Another nice touch is that the phrase ‘Bad Wolf’ is hidden throughout, just like it was in Eccleston’s tenure on TV.

 

Both story arcs (as well as the one-off special that kicks off the collection) are well worth your time. ‘Doctormania’, in particular, has a great set-up; the TARDIS lands on a planet where the Doctor – or rather his mysterious double – is the star of his own TV show called ‘Doctor Who?’ As could be expected, there is a hefty dollop of fourth-wall breaking going on here with an affectionate swipe at the Doctor Who fandom to boot.

 

‘The Transformed’ takes the TARDIS to San Francisco where the population are developing superpowers, in a story that makes use of the unlimited SFX budget of a comic. Meanwhile, a post-Tennant era Mickey Smith needs the Doctor’s help. Pairing the Ninth Doctor up with the older action-hero Mickey is a terrific idea, though Scott does have to jump through hoops to keep the timeline intact. Plus, it ends on an exciting tease for the third volume, with an unexpected appearance from some beloved classic series characters…

 

Brought to life with some great artwork from Adriana Melo and Cris Bolson, Titan’s The Ninth Doctor Volume 2 is a must-read for any fan of one of the shortest-lived Doctors ever. Simply put, it’s – dare we say it – fantastic.

 

DOCTOR WHO: THE NINTH DOCTOR VOL. 2 / WRITER: CAVAN SCOTT / ARTISTS: ADRIANA MELO, CHRIS BOLSON / PUBLISHER: TITAN / RELEASE DATE: 17TH JANUARY

 

Defender is the debut novel of writer GX Todd and is the first in a four-part Voices series. Drawing inspiration from the likes of Stephen King, Clive Barker and Lee Childs, does Todd succeed in cracking a very crowded post-apocalyptic genre?

Defender brings the reader into a world in which the population has been affected with voices in their heads, starting out with just a handful of people but ever expanding into endless destruction and suicide amongst the human population. The story picks up with Pilgrim, an aptly named man of mystery, with some control over his ‘Voice’, who is travelling through a small town in Texas when he encounters Lacey, a young girl he meets over a glass of lemonade. However, when a shocking call from Lacey’s sister, Karey, is made, neither of them quite realises where this journey, and ultimately this partnership, is going to lead.

The novel is extremely refreshing in many respects. Todd uses imagery carefully, in that it enhances characters as opposed to washing them out with clichés; we don’t need to be told by his arrival that Pilgrim is the new (metaphorical) sheriff in town, instead, Todd wastes no time in getting on with the story, rather than being bogged down with nudges and winks for the reader’s benefit. Meanwhile, the story is structured to give Pilgrim and Lacey ample time to explore their perspective as characters, we see what they think of each other (also with the sardonic Voice in Pilgrim’s head providing an extra amusing commentary) and how they are responding to the situation they are being thrown into, it’s as if they creating mysteries for each other to solve, which keeps the reader wanting more. The only minor flaw in Defender is the pace moves so quickly in parts that other parts can drag in order to compensate, however, I can see this will be ironed out as the other three parts of the series are written and subsequently published.

Overall, Defenders shouldn’t be called ‘the next big thing’ because brilliant pieces of writing are massively spoilt with that so-called ‘accolade’, instead we’re going to call it what it is: a brilliant thriller with characters that work with each other and against each other in equal measure, they don’t need to spoon fed to the reader, the reader is with them all the way!

DEFENDER / AUTHOR: GX TODD / PUBLISHER: HEADLINE / RELEASE DATE: JANUARY 12TH

 

A recurring presence in Judge Dredd stories and her own spin-off strip, Psi-Judge Cassandra Anderson is one of the most popular characters from the world of Mega-City One. 2012’s movie Dredd saw a younger Anderson on one of her first cases; around the same time, Alan Grant wrote a series of Cadet Anderson strips, tying into that movie by exploring Anderson’s time at the Academy of Law. These stories are now collected together for the first time.

Big Girls Don’t Cry is a short and snappy six-pager which sees a ten-year-old Anderson coming face to face(s) with the serial killer known as Mr. Face. It’s a gory little tale, especially considering the youth of its protagonist, and effectively sets up the conflict in Anderson’s character – she has to face horrible situations like this and administer justice, but is, and always has been, a more compassionate character than the likes of Dredd.

The title story, Teenage Kyx, jumps ahead a few years. Teenage Anderson goes undercover in the criminal gang behind a series of robberies. It’s definitely the kind of story you couldn’t imagine Dredd in; not only does Anderson dress in punk garb, but there’s an emotional core in her sympathy for gang leader Malinda Kyx, a villain with a tortured past and similar abilities to Anderson.

Next up is Algol, in which Anderson and her tutor Rand are on the trail of a former Psi-Cadet turned murderous perp. This villain, Algol Rey, also has mind powers – albeit much more powerful than any of our Psi-Division heroes. Despite the interesting aesthetic this allows for, as Algol messes with the Judges’ senses, the story is rather predictable, with the big twist heavily signposted and dealt with swiftly.

Finally, One in Ten sees Anderson and a group of cadets investigate a sinister trade in human meat. This dark and gruesome tale highlights the difficulty of life as a Psi-Judge, with the horrors of life in the Big Meg only made worse by telepathic abilities. There’s an emotional sting when this leads one of the Cadets to desperate measures; however, we never really get to know these characters, introduced just for one story, and the impact might have been greater were there more supporting character continuity between stories.

There’s no real standout among these strips and nothing pushes the boundaries like Alan Grant’s earlier and weirder Anderson: Psi Division stories. Rather, they’re largely predictable crime tales albeit with psionically powered villains. Anderson is a compelling hero, with her compassion and youth standing her out from what Dredd readers may be used to, and so keeps this volume entertaining, but other tales do more interesting things with her, while more depth and continuity to the supporting characters would have gone a long way too.

CADET ANDERSON – TEENAGE KYX / AUTHOR: ALAN GRANT / ARTIST: CARLOS EZQUERRA, PATRICK GODDARD, STEVE YEOWELL / PUBLISHER: REBELLION / RELEASE DATE: JANUARY 12TH

While Tom Cruise is leading a new
Universal screen version of The Mummy for 2017, Hammer have dusted off
their version of the tale and brought it to comic books, partnering with Titan
Comics.  The first issue introduced us to
Angelina, a Ukrainian woman abandoned by her boyfriend to people
smugglers. 

After escaping from them,
Angelina found herself singled out by the sinister Sect of Anubis, who needed
her to host the resurrection of the imprisoned spirit of the priestess
Nebetah.  If they are not successful, the
blood drinking ritual needed to prolong their unnaturally long lives will not
happen and death awaits them all.  The
first issue ended with Angelina succumbing to possession by Nebetah and on the
run from the Sect as well as their enemies, the Pyramid Club.

If that’s not enough, Ammit, the
great demon dog of the Land of the Dead, has travelled to Earth to find a soul
to replace the departed Nebetah.  As the
confused but growing powerful Angelina roams the streets of London, she is
hunted by them all.  In desperation she
turns to Duncan in the Pyramid Club, who believes there’s still time to stop
the process and save Angelina. 

Building on the set-up from last
issue, writer Peter Milligan makes it more explicit this time around that
Angelina is the pawn of old men. 
Literally in the case of the Sect, whose members have lived for over a
hundred years by drinking the blood of an unfortunate young woman every 30 or
so years.  Even in the case of the
potential heroes the Pyramid Club, that organisation is made up of crusty old
men who would just as soon kill Angelina themselves to do ‘good’.

Flashback memories Angelina
suffers show her that Nebetah herself had been brutally betrayed by her
one-time lover Kharis.  Thousands of
years apart, these two women have both found themselves abused and used by powerful,
amoral men.  It gives the story a
pleasingly updated perspective and cleverly helps to invest the reader in
Angelina’s story, even though we know little about her. 

Milligan pays tribute to the
history of Hammer (from names to the male characters practically stepping out
of one of their 1960s films) and folds in references to smart phones and other
things that modernise the story.  The art
and colour (from Ronilson Friere, Ming Sen and Dijjo Lima) might not be
spectacular but it does the job more than satisfactorily.  Overall, it’s shaping up nicely and comes
recommended.

As with last issue, there’s a
nice article on Hammer mummy film series by esteemed studio historian Marcus
Hearn, this time the second film The Curse of the Mummy’s Tomb.

THE MUMMY: PALIMPSEST / AUTHOR:
PETER MILLIGAN / ARTIST: RONILSON FREIRE / PUBLISHER: TITAN / RELEASE DATE: OUT
NOW