Dublin-based comic collective Limit Break Comics recently launched a Kickstarter campaign for its new Norse horror anthology FRACTURED REALMS.
About the book: The darkest nights of Fimbulwinter are upon us, Ragnarök isn’t far behind, and the Nine Realms are falling… welcome to FracturedRealms, the new anthology from Limit Break Comics. Norse mythology meets contemporary horror in this 24-story collection from Irish and international creators, totalling 96 pages.
Limit Break has previously successfully crowdfunded two other myth-inspired anthology books: TURNING ROADS in 2021, and DOWN BELOW in 2022. FRACTURED REALMS will feature stories by over 50 comic creators and is due for publication in the winter of 2023. The book is edited by Limit Break’s own Paul Carroll and Gary Moloney, and is supported by the Arts Council of Ireland.
The cover to FRACTURED REALMS, by Nick Roche (inks) and JP Jordan (colors).
FRACTURED REALMS will put a unique horror spin on stories from Norse mythology and folklore, including the Mead of Poetry, Thor’s Fishing Trip, the talking head of Mimir, and — of course — Ragnarök.
Creators involved: Brendan Albetski, Sarah Amundson, Kaydee Artistry, Daniel Beals, Nick Bryan, Patrick Buermeyer, Nick Caponi, Paul Carroll, Colin Craker, Aaron Cruz, Robert Cullen, Ryan Estrada, Anna Everts, Tríona Farrell, Aaron Fever, Ben Filby, Alex Garrick-Wright, Kyle Gaynier, Oliver Gerlach, Adam Gilbert, Travis B. Hill, Seán Hogan, DC Hopkins, Ben Humeniuk, Liam Johnson, JP Jordan, Seamus Kavanagh, James Killian, Rapha Lobosco, J.J. Lopez, Andriy Lukin, Marin, Aline Martins, Adlai McCook, John McGuinness, Alyssa Meier, Mariana Meira, Michiums , Chris Mole, Gary Moloney, Alex Moore, Oscar Osorio, Chris Panda, Benjamin Paulus, Christian Abel Peña, Lan Pitts, Nikki Powers, Toben Racicot, Jack Reickel, Rae RS, Andrea Schiavone, Gustaffo Vargas
In addition to the new book itself, Limit Break is offering up all kinds of rewards for backers, including titles from their back catalogue, stickers, pins, zines, and more. Aspiring creators even have the chance to have their own script reviewed by Paul and Gary.
Limit Break Comics is a Dublin-based comic collective, founded in 2018 on the back of a shared desire to see small press comics grow in Ireland. It is made up of Paul Carroll, Gareth Luby, Gary Moloney and Seamus Kavanagh.
The premise is simple: read one comic every day for the entire year. It seems like a simple task but there is no way that I read 365 comics last year, even if you count the individual issues in collections. So, this year, I am committing myself to this reading challenge, in the hope that I can broaden my reading habits and fully engage with my favorite hobby again.
When someone mentions comic book adaptations to you, what do you think of first? Is it one of the movies from the MCU? Or possibly Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy? Maybe it’s a television series such as CW’s Arrow or Supergirl. For me, it’s the magnificent world of Classics Illustrated, or the various comic versions of Frankenstein based on the original novel and the numerous film adaptations. You see, I find adaptation infinitely fascinating, and the different translations from one medium to another has so much to say about the process of creating comics, film, and novels. Adaptation is an art form unto itself.
This week I’m going to be working through (or at least start on) a collection of comics based on novels.
One of several Dune comic books
Comic Number 64: Dune (2021)
Frank Herbert’s Dune has a long history with adaptation. First there was the David Lynch movie, which was adapted into a three-part limited series by Marvel Comics and later collected in Marvel Super Special #36. The novel was then given the TV treatment, an ambitious project, but surprisingly bland. More recently, the novel hit the big screen again, and this time BOOM! Studios began releasing prequel comics based on the expanded universe novels — those not directly linked to the movie. Also, Abrams ComicArts started a three book adaptation of the novel, again not directly linked to the 2021 movie.
It is the first of these books that I am currently reading. The cover is by Bill Sienkiewicz, and he perfectly captures the raw power of the atmospheric novel, just as he did with the Marvel version in the 1980’s. It’s a shame, then, that the artwork by Raul Allen and Patricia Martin does not have the same effect. The work is good and has some dramatic flair but it does not own the narrative in the same way Sienkiewicz did. This book is an interesting study for adaptation purposes because it is a very faithful re-imaging of the original text, with much of the script lifted directly from Herbert’s novel. The question remains, how much is added to the graphic novel to distinguish itself from the original book? Is it merely a recreation with illustrations replacing descriptive text?
I am enjoying the book, but I am reading it much more like a novel than I am a comic. The script — the actual text on the pages — is more important than the images. There is very little added by the artwork, with only the occasional elaborate panel or two bringing a visual dynamism. The book highlights one aspect of literary adaptation: that of constant space. In a novel the characters are well defined but their locations are fixed at specific points and then barely mentioned. As a reader, you place the character in the location outside of the actual written word. In a comic, the location is constantly visible. In this version of Dune, the artists choose to fill each panel and page with scenery and location, almost to the point of over saturation. And only rarely does it add anything to the narrative. In the 2021 movie, it could be argued that the focus is primarily on the locations, with the scenery and props telling the story, which works very well. Filmmaker Denis Villeneuve is telling his version of the Dune legacy through a visual spectacle because that is cinema’s strength. Allen and Martin occasionally accentuate an element of the novel in a visual, comics specific way, often through their use of color saturation, but this does not happen enough.
Maybe, when the story gets going, this will change.
Frankenstein in Classics Illustrated #13
Comic Number 65: Frankenstein (Classics Illustrated)
The Classics Illustrated range of comics was devised to introduce literary texts to children and reluctant readers. The series has been described as “uneventful, one-dimensional, often blatantly silly literary adaptation” (from Literary Adaptations in Comics and Graphic Novels by Jan Baetens, 2020). However, that standpoint is counterproductive to the purpose of the comic. The Classics Illustrated range was specifically aimed at younger readers, therefore potentially falling into the realms of children’s books, and almost by default they do one thing that is uniquely comics: they embrace reduction.
Comics are all about reduction — about taking an idea or an image and reducing it to its minimal form while still being recognizable. Cartoons and comic strips use the least amount of lines to depict characters and places. This reduction, however, does not make the comics infantile or unworthy.
In Frankenstein (numbered 13 in the series I have), Ruth A. Roche cherry picks the elements of the novel that are important for representing the key themes. These are then illustrated by Robert Hayward Webb and Ann Brewster to a strict page count. It is true that some sequences of the novel have been massively condensed or removed altogether, however it is the way in which they handle what is left that is truly impressive. Webb and Brewster pack so much tension, horror, and raw emotion into each page that the essence of the novel shines through. One panel can contain enough information to warrant jettisoning whole sections of the book. And the use of the space on the page is brilliant. The sequence where the creature first awakens is composed upon the page in such a way as to visually demonstrate the hold the creature already has over Victor. The scientist is trapped within the panels and overshadowed on the page.
It is this visual image play that makes comic adaptations of novels so interesting. Seeing the way that people interpret a text and the ingenious ways in which they represent emotional and psychological themes in a purely visual way.
The Stand published by Marvel Comics
Comic Number 66: The Stand (Marvel Comics)
Stephen King’s The Stand is arguably one of his best novels. Yes, it has some moments that flounder, and the “kill them all” shock two thirds of the way in clearly exists only to move the plot on (King has admitted as much, himself), but that doesn’t detract from the score of horrific scenes, intense characters, and compelling End of Days story that is a precursor to the modern obsession with apocalypse narratives.
And for today’s reading, I picked up issue 3 of The Stand: American Nightmares. This comic is a perfect example of how to adapt the written word. This issue is centered on Larry Underwood and his journey out of the disease ridden New York. In the grand scheme of things (by which I mean the 1002 pages of tightly printed text in my Complete and Uncut edition of the novel), this sequence is a fleeting moment. A few pages of unnerving exodus used to bring two characters closer together and highlight to the reader the move from the closed, isolated plot threads to the wider world beyond. And yet, it is possibly one of the most memorable parts of the story. It contains everything required to scare the reader and get inside their heads. In an interview with Marvel.com, series artist Mike Perkins shared his excitement for this particular part of the book, stating “This scene with Larry just oozes tension,” and was one of the reasons that, unlike most book to comic adaptations, the scene was extended to include elements that weren’t in the original. Perkins and writer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa stretched Larry’s journey through the Lincoln Tunnel so that they could get inside the characters head and add new levels of horror that were not in King’s novel.
The way that Perkins depicts the intense claustrophobia in this comic is almost perfect. The gruesome images of murdered pedestrians and imagined zombies creates a visual horror akin to cinema’s body horror genre. However, it is the all encompassing darkness that really gives this comic its menace. On pages 13 and 14, Perkins switches the darkness from a vast space for Larry to be lost in to a closed, claustrophobic space. On page 13, the images of the stabbed man are surrounded by light and appear in the boxed panels, while the text, the third person narrative of Larry’s journey, is across the entire page. This reminds the reader that Larry is ever present, even in the black, borderless sections of the page. Then, moving across to page 14, this pattern is reversed so the actual images (thoughts inside Larry’s head) exist in the border-less part of the page while Larry becomes trapped in the panels. The darkness shuts him into a confined space.
In King’s novel, the darkness is alluded to by Larry’s obsession with his lighter and most of the journey is about the things that he imagines to be there. But in the comic, Perkins is able to create the same sense of nervous horror through the depiction of the darkness, coating the pages in pitch blackness. The result is unnerving and creepy. Exactly the right level of tension that Perkins spoke about in the interview.
It’s also worth mentioning Rus Wooton’s lettering in this comic because they do some heavy lifting. The characters’ emotions are brought out in the tone depicted by the changes in text size and emphasis. Larry’s anger, Rita’s pleading and stubbornness, and then the fear in the characters’ voices as they make the most horrific journey of their lives — Wooton’s work perfectly captures the nuances from the novel, proving that you can recreate written emotion using visual techniques.
The Hobbit Graphic Novel
Comic Number 67: The Hobbit published by Grafton Books
I could not get on with the Lord of the Rings books and (confession time) never got more than 150 pages into the first book. I do remember reading The Hobbit. And, probably more so, I remember reading the comic book adaptation of The Hobbit illustrated by David Wenzel.
Wenzel’s work is whimsical and majestic. At times the artwork feels more like the illustrations in a children’s book and less like the dynamic characters in an exciting comic. However, that is how this book is meant to be read. It is a dense children’s book, though. If you pick this up thinking that it’ll be a quick way to read The Hobbit, you’ll be disappointed because “text heavy” is a fitting phrase. There are pages where the beautiful watercolor images almost disappear under crammed caption boxes and weighted down word bubbles.
Having said that, Wenzel extracts the atmosphere of the novel and splashes it across the pages. The humor of the hobbits, the stupidity of the trolls, and the creepiness of Gollum are all present in this book. It is also stylistically consistent, something which Peter Jackson’s movie version cannot be accused of.
If the purpose of literary adaptations is to introduce new readers to the originals, then I’m not sure that Charles Dixon, Sean Deming, and David Wenzel’s version of The Hobbit is a good example. Mainly because, after reading this version, I can’t think of any reason why you would be compelled to read the novel, because this book already feels like reading a novel.
City of Glass
Comic Number 68: City of Glass
There are novels that are dubbed “unfilmable” — books that for one reason or another are too immense to be given the cinema treatment. Obviously, this doesn’t stop people from trying, and the same is true for comic book adaptations. However, comics have an advantage over film in that they have less restrictions. A graphic novel project, for example, is not limited to space, allowing the creators to include more from the source material. Movies are often limited to 2 hours (up to 3, possibly, but this is still rare even in today’s movie industry) whereas a graphic novel can have as many pages as are needed to tell the story the creators want to tell.
City of Glass fits both of the points that I have made above, first being a difficult novel to adapt and secondly a fine example of what creators can do when given the freedom that graphic novels allow.
David Mazzucchelli and Paul Karasik’s adaptation of Paul Auster’s novel is an exciting and fascinating read. Auster’s novel is a complex narrative that relies on wordplay and deals with subjects of time and the nature of fiction, all of which are difficult to represent in the visual forum. However, Mazzucchelli translates the word play into image play. He takes the essence of the novel, and how it relates to that particular medium, and injects that into the comic, making it comic specific. The general narrative runs through both versions but their emphasis relates to their own media. This means that a level of abstraction is evident in the graphic novel version, with a high number of non-sequitur panel transitions. It is a visual feast and challenges the reader in the same way that Auster’s novel required the reader to engage with the fiction and solve the literary puzzles.
Example of page layout from City of Glass
Comic Number 69: Academic Papers
Replacing today’s comic is an article written about the application of literary adaptation to comics and graphic novels. (That’s not because I haven’t read a comic, though. I’m working through Hickman’s Fantastic Four run and today read issue number 583. It just didn’t fit this week’s topic.) Entitled Literary Adaptations in Comics and Graphic Novels by Jan Baetens, published in The Oxford Handbook of Comic Book Studies in 2020, the article investigates why literary adaptations are under-represented within the comics world. Movies and television embrace novels and there are hundreds of adaptations, which are often praised and studied. Baetens points out that in cinema it is “assumed that the best adaptations are based on the worst novels, the good ones being resistant to any kind of faithful reworking,” whereas in comics only a few classics are constantly adapted and re-adapted. I have also found this to be the case, especially this week as I have looked for adaptations to read. There are a few modern writers whose work has been faithfully re-imagined as comics — Stephen King and Anne Rice for example — but these appear to be few and far between.
The article also discusses the types of adaptation, drawing on the pros and cons, and constantly comes around to the concept of fidelity. Fidelity rules the roost on the internet with the release of every superhero movie but the actual relationship between fidelity and adaptation is complex. Baeten’s starts the discussion here but it is too large a subject for this one article.
Finally, Baetens asks the question, are literary adaptations in comics second-rate or do they offer something new from the process of translation? The answer, as you can imagine, is not straight forward. I personally believe that any form of adaptation can be worthwhile but we have to stop being fixated on the concept of fidelity. Spiritual adaptations, by that I mean adaptations that take the essence of the original text, can produce the most interesting work. You only need to look at the history of Shakespearean adaptations to see this in practice.
Title page for Frankenstein from Prize Comics #7
Comic Number 70: Prize Comics #7
The idea of multiple versions of the same story is a fundamental part of Frankenstein’s history. Even before the array of adaptations appeared, the original novel was revised and re-released several times in Shelley’s lifetime, and nearly 300 editions have been released since.
In 1940, Dick Briefer brought the Frankenstein narrative to life in a successful comic strip. Briefer’s Frankenstein starts life as a horror comic strip in Prize Comics #7 where it retells a large portion of Mary Shelley’s novel before introducing a twist ending. The ending was to serve a purpose: it allowed Briefer to continue the story beyond the original narrative. It also allowed him to re-introduce a theme from the novel that was lacking for much of his interpretation. You see, in this initial version, the creature does not speak for the majority of the story. He is a “grunter,” which is a term given to a particular interpretation of the creature and made popular by the 1931 film.
Although Briefer’s monster is influenced by the look and vocabulary of the earlier adaptations, much of Shelley’s story is condensed into the few wonderful and energetic scenes. One aspect that Briefer draws on is the use of setting to reflect mood. This is an important part of the original and Briefer is able to make great use of it in this visual adaptation. The contrast between consuming darkness and oppressive light features in several juxtaposed panels, capturing the struggle within the creature as it tries to understand the life and the world it has been born into.
Despite the low page count, Briefer proves that it is possible to successfully capture the essence of a novel, re-imagine it in visual terms, and even add something to the source text to, on this occasion, give it longevity.
The Further Adventures of Frankenstein can be read in the pages of Prize Comics, available for free on the archive website Comic Book Plus. They are worth looking at, and get quite gruesome in places.
So, what is the point of comic adaptations of novels? I would argue that if your comic doesn’t add anything to the original then it has failed as an adaptation. If all your comic has done is retell the book but with pictures, the final product serves no purpose.
Adaptations have the ability to help education (Classics Illustrated), enhance magical worlds (The Hobbit), enrich or even alter the perspective of the original (The Stand), or re-imagine a concept so that it fits modern, alternative societies, using the familiarity of the source material as a grounding or point of contrast. They can even create something new and exciting while still remaining true to the original (City of Glass). Comics, as a medium, have the ability to do things that other media are not able to do, in the same way that film or photography can. So, what is wrong with allowing comics to embrace works of literature and interpret them in new and imaginative ways?
Since Zeb Wells took over writing duties on Amazing Spider-Man, there has been some tension between Peter and Mary Jane. As a reader, we had no idea what happened. Picking up the first issue felt like you missed out on a key story element. Here we are, 21 issues later, and Wells is finally giving us the story arc of what Peter did. Joining Wells on this issue are John Romita Jr. on pencils, Scott Hanna on inks, Marcio Menyz on colors, and Joe Caramagna on letters.
WRITING
This is an important story arc for Wells’ run, because a lot of what he’s doing hinges on whether or not this is a believable plot. Readers have been wondering how Peter ruined everything and screwed up all his relationships; this is Wells chance to show what he can do. This is an issue that jumps between the present and the past, one year ago specifically. Wells uses his time in the present to show us how the lives of Peter and Mary Jane are going. Peter is running late as usual and has to multitask to attempt to get to work on time. Mary Jane is moving on and living her new life with her husband Paul and their kids (part of the mystery that Wells has set up). All of this stops for Peter and Mary Jane when the Tattered Man reappears. Wells uses that moment to take us back in time one year. The last half of the issue is devoted to showing the reader how the Tattered Man escaped from Ryker’s Island and what his connection is to Peter and Mary Jane. Wells will definitely pique your interest with this issue. As it ended, I wanted to read more and see what would happen next. The use of the Tattered Man is an interesting choice too. We don’t know much about him or what his powers can do, but he is definitely a powerful threat. As the first issue wraps, Spider fans should be pleased with where this story is going. Wells is successful in getting fans excited and invested in this book — he gives just enough answers but raises more questions to keep you reading. I can’t wait to see what the next issue brings.
ART
John Romita Jr. does the pencils for this issue under Hanna’s inks, and it’s some of his best modern work. Romita Jr. can sometimes be a bit boxy with his art, especially with heads, but this issue doesn’t look like that at all. As Mary Jane talks to her and Paul’s children, their heads and body are shaped well and don’t have that boxiness that we sometimes see with his art. In a panel where Mary Jane is disappointed that it’s taking the kids too long to get dressed, Romita Jr. draws her wonderfully, and the look on her face is picture perfect. There is also something eerie to how he draws this rendition of the Tattered Man. Romita Jr. gives him a look and design that allows the reader to see that this is a character that is not playing games. The deadness of his eyes and unkempt hair lets us know this is a man with nothing to lose.
Menyz’s colors in this issue generate a lot of warmth. The reds as the Tattered Man slices a fellow inmate speak volumes, as does the vibrant yellow glow as the villain floats through the street. These can both signify danger for our hero, as warm colors can often be equated with trouble. There is a great page where Spider-Man is fighting the Tattered Man outside. The contrast in colors Menyz uses between the power coming off of the Tattered Man and the gorgeous blue sky is truly eye catching.
The letters by Joe Caramagna are excellent here. This is an issue that uses a lot of sound effects and yelling, so Caramagna had a lot of work to do. We get started right on the first page as Peter forgets what day of the week it is. Caramagna uses a large “FRIDAY” to emphasis Peter yelling. Later, as the battle between Spider-Man and the Tattered Man ensues, Peter hits him with a chunk of drywall and Caramagna lays down a nice “THUNK” right next to the Tattered Man’s head. This is an emotional issue, so the yells and loud voices are littered throughout the issue. When the Tattered Man reappears, Mary Jane yells “HE CAME BACK” — Caramagna uses a quarter of the panel for his letters to emphasize the fear in her voice.
CONCLUSION
Amazing Spider-Man #21 is a very good start for this story arc. Zeb Wells writes an interesting introductory issue that finally gives us the back story we’ve been waiting for. John Romita Jr. turns in some of his best pencils in recent memory and reminds everyone he is an A-list talent. Amazing Spider-Man #21 is available at a comic shop near you!
From writer Ed Brisson (Ghost Rider, Batman Inc.) and artist Netho Diaz comes Marvel Comics’ send series following the galaxy’s most terrifying hunters in Predator #1. Featuring inks by Belardino Brabo and Victor Nava, colors from Erick Arcinega, and lettering by Clayton Cowles, this new series is propped up by some solid art but brought down by an all-too familiar premise.
“FEAR IS REBORN! On a planet far from Earth, eight strangers find themselves in a deadly game. But this time, the Predators aren’t the only ones on the hunt. Someone has the Yautja in their sites – and they’ve been searching for this game preserve for a long time. Ed Brisson and Netho Diaz kicks off an explosive new series that will turn everything you thought you knew about Predators on its head!”
Writing & Plot
Accomplished comics writer Ed Brisson makes a couple of unusual choices with his script for Predator #1. In his defense, he makes this new series an actual direct follow-up to last year’s Predator mini-series, much like how in the Dark Horse era most of the separate comics were actually linked into one large story. Also, from page one this certainly feels like a Predator story. We quite literally hit the ground running with some good old-fashioned bullet-flinging and spine-tearing. However, while it’s impossible to escape the tropes and habits of prior Predator stories from every medium, this one sticks a little too close to one of the franchise’s prior films. A group of killers the world over are suddenly dropped onto a jungle planet with no memory of how they got there, and are immediately hunted down by the masked aliens. While every Predator comic has had its obvious references to the films, just blatantly re-using the plot of one – in this case 2010’s Predators – feels cheap. Granted, Brisson throws some interesting wrinkles in the story, it still stays too close to that film for too long. The other strange choice here is using the 2018 film The Predator – the one film we’re all trying to forget – as essential backstory. Yes, the prior series does the same thing which also becomes a key element in this new chapter, but using such a hilariously flawed film as plot fodder is an odd idea. Fortunately, the issue does pick up in the last couple pages with the potential for some genuinely interesting developments. Hopefully, Brisson is able to make some magic out of a pile of oddities – this is comics, after all.
Art Direction
Predator #1’s strongest feature is its visual storytelling, thanks to the efforts of Netho Diaz’s pencils and Belardino Brabo & Victor Nava’s inks. The art team here throws the reader into this alien jungle with excellent environmental detail, great character animation, and strong sequential pacing. While the cast aren’t really memorable as characters (not a huge deal, they’re mostly trophy fodder), they are each drawn with a distinct look that matches their varied backgrounds as different kinds of soldiers. Without spoiling one of the major plot points, several of the fighters here have a distinct descriptor that adds even more of a sci-fi twist to this alien-filled comic. Diaz’s designs look the part without ever feeling completely out of place. His take on the Predators themselves is familiar in all the right ways, with a touch of his own to make at least one of the hunters memorable. One of them has a missing eyepiece in his mask with the scar to match, making for some pretty badass closeup shots. Brabo and Nava’s inks make the jungle dark and oppressive, and perfect the detail in every panel. They work in tandem with Eric Arcinega’s dense color art to make a stellar visual experience that stands tall with other great looking Predator comics. The deep jungle greens and flashes of thickly-toned blood spatter make for a proper Predator reading experience right out of the original 1987 film. Finally, Clayton Cowles’ letters make for great punctuation in every sequence. His dialogue balloons are easy to read and capture character tone well, but his SFX work is what really shines. Every action sequence is peppered with cleverly placed FX lettering that never overtakes the panels, but still make an impact on the page. Overall, this new entry in the Predator universe has some solid visual work that brings readers right back into the hunt.
Verdict
Predator #1 is a puzzling first issue that has some definite potential. Ed Brisson’s script relies too heavily on prior films for too long before dipping into the most interesting new plot elements. The visuals from Netho Diaz, Belardino Brabo, Victor Nava, and Erick Arcinega are very solid and sit high among modern Predator comics. While there are some problems with this first chapter, it’s got enough intrigue and momentum in its story to warrant reading what’s coming next. If you’re a Predator fan, be sure to grab this issue from your local comic shop today!
THE X-CELLENT #1 hits your local comic book store on March 15th, but thanks to Marvel Comics, Monkeys Fighting Robots has an exclusive four-page preview for you!
About the issue: Your favorite celebrity super villains are back! Zeitgeist is still on a mission to achieve social media godhood, no matter who he has to kill! But the spotlight won’t be big enough when the next generation of the X-Statix drop in! Join Peter Milligan and Michael Allred for the final half of their mutant celebrity saga!
The issue is by writer Peter Milligan and artist Michael “Doc” Allred, with colors by Laura Allred, and letters by Nate Piekos. The main cover is by Michael and Laura Allred.
Check out the THE X-CELLENT #1 preview below:
Are you excited for THE X-CELLENT? Sound off in the comments!
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #1 hits your local comic book shop on April 12, but thanks to Marvel Comics, Monkeys Fighting Robots has an early review for our readers. The book is written by Collin Kelly & Jackson Lanzing; Kev Walker is the artist, Matt Hollingsworth is the colorist, and you will read the letter work by Cory Petit.
About the new series:
One year ago, the Guardians of the Galaxy were destroyed. Their optimistic future is shattered by the betrayal of one of their own. Now they ride the space lanes of a lawless corner of the galaxy, trying to outrun their tragedy. Can they rediscover their heroism and humanity on the bleakest frontier? Can they forgive the failures of their past? Or will they fade into the dark, eternally unforgiven?
My first impression of the issue; I have no clue what is going on, the jokes are clunky, but the artwork is amazing. With Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 coming out in May, it’s hard not to read the dialogue and add the voices and delivery of Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldaña, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff to the comic. With that said, I can’t wait to read the second issue.
The setup by Kelly and Lanzing is enough to hook me for the first story arc. GROOTFALL is an intriguing concept, and Walker makes it look impressive. The western setting works for the comic, and jumping right into the action gives the book a sense of urgency. It isn’t until you put the book down that you start to ask a million questions. This is good because you are engaging with the story.
Walker’s art and Hollingsworth’s colors are the stars of the show. There are major Mike Mignola and Walt Simonson vibes going on in this book. With his horned jacket, Drax is definitely the “Hellboy” of the Guardians. Hollingsworth’s colors are rich and bold yet maintain the western feel.
Walker’s use of panel structure adds to the chaos of the story and the dysfunction of the Guardians. Angling action panels give the reader the feeling the story will jump into your lap. Also, the chaotic panels almost seem to rattle as the impending doom gets closer.
Cory Petit has to deal with a lot of yelling and action, but the story remains easy to follow and read. In one great example, a word balloon is outlined in red as Star Lord said, “LET’S RIDE!” followed by a “FWOOOSH” and a “THOOM.” The action jumps off the page, and you feel solid movement as the action unfolds.
Overall, GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY #1 is a must-buy in my book. I need to know what happened to Groot and Rocket Racoon!
THE FORGED #1 hits your local comic book shop on March 15, but thanks to Image Comics, Monkeys Fighting Robots has an early review for our readers. The book is written by Greg Rucka and Eric Trautmann, with art by Mike Henderson, Nolan Woodward brings the colors to life, and you will read Ariana Maher’s letter work.
About THE FORGED #1: In the 11th Millennium of the rule of the Eternal Empress, a squad of planet-smashing super soldiers find their routine mission to be anything but. These are the Forged. They take no prisoners.
Check out my review below.
THE FORGED #1 is a gorgeous oversized book. Rucka creates an indie film with heart, and then Trautmann, Henderson, and Woodward elevate THE FORGED to a blockbuster movie with the artwork. This was a fun read and hooked me on the concept and the mystery.
The best part of the issue is how Rucka and Trautmann creates a bond between the reader and the female team of grunts, the Forged. You are right in the trenches with them, and you might get covered in some grease if you don’t watch out.
Image Comics calls it an over-the-top pulp adventure of sex, violence, and sci-fi inspired by Conan, Heavy Metal, and other comics you tried to hide from your parents. The way the “navy” officers were designed and the color the palette used, THE FORGED felt like an R-Rated version of Robotech.
Since this is a female-led book, it was interesting to look at the “camera angles” used in the panel layout and who was the object and who was the subject. Also, there is a character named Cassandra. In Greek Mythology, Cassandra means the one who shines and excels over men. Rucka gives you layers in THE FORGED; how deep you want to go is up to you.
THE FORGED #1 is a must-buy because of its concept, depth of story, and over-the-top artwork.
MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE: MASTERVERSE #2 hits your local comic book shop on March 15, but thanks to Dark Horse Comics, Monkeys Fighting Robots has a five-page preview for our readers. The issue tells three tales written by Tim Seeley with art by Eddie Nunez, E.J. Su, and Victor Santos. The colorists on MASTERVERSE #2 are Rico Renzi and Michael Wiggam; you will read the letter work by Deron Bennett.
About the issue: In the depths of Castle Grayskull, The Sorceress attempts to save He-Man from Zodak with more tales of his influence across the multiverse! In a world where champions have fallen, a hard-bitten Duncan and his partner Evil-Lyn take on a strange kidnapping case in MAN-AT-ARMS-FOR-HIRE! And on the Harmony Sea, Adam, Commander of the King’s army and the captured thief Jitsu search for the power to conquer Eternia!
I’ve been in a bit of a comic slump lately. I’m reading plenty (maybe that’s the problem), but it felt like a while since I read something that really made me feel something. That’s not to say I haven’t read some really good, or even great, stuff recently. I was just looking for something that would remind me why I love this medium – something that moved me enough to say “man, I need to write about this book.”
Then I picked up the first volume of PUBLIC DOMAIN.
PUBLIC DOMAIN is Chip Zdarsky’s creator-owned series, which he puts out first via his Substack, and then later distributes physically through Image. It’s an inside baseball look at the comics industry, about a family whose patriarch co-created “The Domain,” one of pop culture’s most recognizable characters. The Domain has been a cash cow for the publisher, but Zdarsky’s protagonist reaps very little of the rewards. There are elements of both comedy and drama; it’s a wide critique of the business behind our favorite characters, and it’s a very intimate look at one family’s dysfunction. Ultimately — and this is PUBLIC DOMAIN’s greatest strength — it’s about people.
Broken people, to be exact. People who do the wrong thing when they’re trying to do right, and people who do the right thing and are punished for it. Complicated people that you want to both yell at and root for at the same time, and their relationships with one another.
Take Syd, the father who co-created The Domain. Syd worked hard his whole life to provide for his wife and two sons, but at the expense of being truly present in their lives. Then there’s Miles, the eldest son who seems like he wants to help his family, but acts in a way that’s frustratingly selfish. Even characters who are introduced as mustache-twirling bad guys are given sympathetic moments as the story progresses.
These characters feel real. People will read PUBLIC DOMAIN and understand Miles’ complicated feelings towards his father — the odd mixture of resentment and gratefulness.
And the overall story feels just as real (unfortunately). As big as superhero properties are today, the general non-comics-reading populace doesn’t know about the writers and artists who created their favorite characters. Most will defer credit to the corporations instead of the people who did the work, which is exactly how the executives want it. All too often, we hear stories about creators who did not receive credit or compensation for their work.
Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster struggled in poverty without recognition for most of their lives while DC profited off their work. The same went for Bill Finger, who established almost everything recognizable about Batman, but whose contributions were downplayed and virtually ignored by his co-creator Bob Kane. And these are just two of the most famous examples; there are countless other creators from every generation whose characters both big and small are featured in blockbuster movies and TV shows, but who will largely remain unknown to most viewers.
It’s infuriating, but that’s part of what makes PUBLIC DOMAIN so gripping. There’s not that wall of separation where you can read it and say, “it’s just a comic.” It’s a comic that is perfectly emulating all-too-common real life scenarios in both the family drama and the copyright disputes — something Zdarsky acknowledges outright on his credits page, where he makes a point to state that he and his collaborators own their original works. I wanted to read a comic that made me feel something deeply, and I did. Syd and Miles’ story made me feel rage and sadness — and these feelings were all amplified because I know there are real people walking the streets every day experiencing these same things.
Slice-of-life comics feel “real” in a way that other genres can’t. They give us characters and scenarios that we can see ourselves in without any qualifiers. They allow us to relate and engage with the story to its fullest extent — which is why it’s sad we don’t see more of them in the mainstream. Western comics just haven’t taken much of a chance on slice-of-life comics in the way that manga, webcomics, and underground comics have, but PUBLIC DOMAIN is the perfect example of why mainstream publishers should embrace this genre. (And yes, there are other great slice-of-life comics put out by major publishers, but they’re few and far between. I beg you to look into them.)
I read a lot of comics, and when you indulge in too much of something, you can start to lose your taste for it. The tropes jump out at you more and more, and the stories don’t resonate with you like they once did. PUBLIC DOMAIN shook me up in a way that I forgot comics could. If you passed it up because a legal drama about a dysfunctional family didn’t sound appealing to you, I implore you to give it a chance. It’s a tale about troubled people trying to hold themselves together in the face of injustice, and what’s more real than that?
(Side note: if you’re interested in learning more about real-life comic creators who were screwed over by the system and those who fought back, check out the documentary BATMAN & BILL on Hulu.)
Lost Ollie is a hybrid live-action and animated, four-part series on Netflix about a boy and his toys from director Peter Ramsey (Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse) and creator Shannon Tindle (Kubo and the Two Strings) featuring the voice talents of Mary J. Blige and Tim Blake Nelson and starring Gina Rodriguez (Jane the Virgin). Scot Stafford of Pollen Music created the score by blending two wildly different musical genres.
Ollie is a rabbit toy with a country twang who wakes up at the lost and found of an antique shop. Vague memories remind him that he was separated from his best friend, Billy. So Ollie decides to take a journey, following the little clues offered by his fractured memory to guide him. But he has helpin the form of Zozo (Nelson), a toy clown, and his friend Rosy (Blige), a pink, sword-wielding teddy bear. During his adventure to find his family, Ollie remembers his life with Billy, his parents, and the hard times they faced. Billy’s also searching for his friend despite the troubles happening to and around the young boy.
PopAxiom spoke with Scot Stafford about making the music for Lost Ollie.
Split In Two
Scot’s story starts, in part, because of a musically talented older brother. But the skill was a mystery. “It was nowhere to be found in our family before him. I have no idea what possessed him, but he was obsessed with music at a very young age,” Scot explains. They took piano lessons, and by the time Scot was five, and his brother was eight, he was writing songs.
They had a cassette recorder that recorded a bit too fast. “When we’d play it back, it would sound slow. So we’d sound like older people,” Scot continues. “Farts would sound funny.”
Scot and his brother “became obsessed” with recording themselves, including creating a fake radio station. “We’d write these songs about disco but in no way remotely influenced by disco. It was what we thought disco was from watching all these cool people on TV.”
When asked about his earliest influences, in addition to disco, Scot references going to church as a child. He was amazed by the impressive sounds of a choir and the immense pipe organs.
Scot studied classical music but only played it half the time. “I was always in a rock band or some experimental noise band. So by day, I was a classical musician and this mischievous rocker by night.”
Scot attributes his wide range of interests early on to his ability to adapt to the ever-changing nature of film and television music production. “Every project is different,” Scot says. “I think Lost Ollie brought a lot of different things together. We all have different interests, and when a project can bring those together, that’s unique and precious.”
Rip-off
In his 20’s, Scot focused on songwriting and playing in bands. “It didn’t fully pan out, at least regarding a career,” Scot laughs. However, his early musician years led Scot to meet and befriend a number of incredible creatives.
One such creative was animator Doug Sweetland, who had been coming to Scot’s rock shows for some time. Pixar was gaining acclaim as an animation studio, and Sweeland had just finished up on Bug’s Life when Doug approached Scot with ideas for a collaboration on an animated music video for one of the band’s songs.
“I was fed and nourished by animation, but at that age, it wasn’t what I was paying attention to,” Scot says. “I also thought at the time that computer animation was more about the death of art than creating a new one. So I was one of those guys.”
Doug and Scot started talking about doing a music video together. Doug pitched a few ideas for some songs, and then Scot’s perception of Doug completely flipped. “It’s hard to describe, but I realized this person I thought I knew was a complete genius,” he recounts.
Years later, Doug was directing a Pixar theatrical short called Presto and asked Scot to come on board as a composer. “It evoked a lot of nostalgic cartoons,” Scot says of the score. “It was an incredible opportunity to dive into the golden era of cartoon scores.”
“I went deep into Carl Stalling who was probably, along with John Williams, my biggest influence,” Scot says of the legendary composer. “I spent a month trying not to rip off Carl, but the people that influenced him.”
About Lost Ollie
Scot met with show creator Shannon Tindle. “The first thing he said was that he wanted it to sound like an Appalachian Lord of the Rings,” he remembers. “That’s a very evocative thing to say. Sometimes these broad strokes are a strong idea. I knew I had to work on Lost Ollie.”
It was the “perfect prompt” for Scot, even if most others might balk at that strange combination. “Not only do I have family roots in Appalachia, but it’s also something I’ve been thinking about a lot. I grew up for a big part of my life in West Virginia. That region is a special place culturally in terms of music and instruments.”
Scot also grew up as a big Tolkien nerd. “I memorized Elvish poetry when I was 12 years old,” he recalls. To have a project like this that brought together Appalachia and folk music with the implied epic orchestral music was intriguing.
He asked himself, “How do I find a family of instruments that would speak those two languages to get to that level of emotion?” The answer to his questions came in the form of a fretless mountain banjo, which he learned how to play, as well as a mountain dulcimer. Both instruments are heard frequently on the score.
Wrapping Up
There’s no doubt that it was a challenge for Scot to blend orchestral and Appalachian folk together harmoniously. “We had some talented musicians in the recording studio,” Scot explains. “I worked with Stephen Spies, a staff composer at Pollen. He’s a talented fiddle player. I got him to record some of the fiddle parts, which became one of the central sounds of the score. Subtle changes would push things to sound more orchestral or more Appalachian.”
Also key to the score was the technology used to capture the sound. On Pollen’s JJ Wiesler’s recommendation, they recorded the orchestra in Atmos in Budapest. “We captured the front, back, and height of the hall, placing microphones according to common Atmos speaker locations. Most of the time, when you mix music, you never provide Atmos to the mix. It can be hard to preserve that throughout the process. But because JJ was mixing the music, and long-time collaborator Jamey Scott was doing the final mix, we were able to pull it off,” Scot says.
In the future, Scot’s excited to push formats creatively for more impactful, immersive experiences. Fans of a beloved Japanese franchise will also be excited to learn about Scot’s next project. “I’m working on Shannon Tindle’s next big project, an Ultraman feature,” he reveals.
Is Lost Ollie on your watch list?
Thanks to Scot Stafford and Impact24 PR
for making this interview possible.