From modern comics icon Jeff Lemire comes his first ever series published at Boom! Studios with Minor Arcana #1. Featuring Steve Wands on letters, this first issue endears readers to the protagonist with fantastic character writing, while teasing the magical yet foreboding undercurrent this story will dive into. With a compelling story and Lemire’s unmistakable visuals, Minor Arcana is off to an excellent start.
“Theresa, the daughter of a small-town “psychic” fraud, returns home to care for her ailing mother, however begrudgingly. But when Theresa discovers that there may be more to the magic than she originally believed, she’ll find herself caught up in a town that desperately needs her help…”
Writing & Plot
Jeff Lemire once again dabbles in the world of the supernatural with Minor Arcana #1. Unlike the reality-breaking horror of Gideon Falls, however, here he focuses more on the concepts of “magical gifts” through the guise of confronting a difficult childhood. Thersa’s journey to her childhood home is one of frustration and pain that feels very real. One of Jeff Lemire’s strengths as a writer has always been how human his characters are. He’s one of the best in comics at crafting characters that feel like people you’ve met, with very real – often tragic – stories. Lemire spends most of this issue introducing readers to Theresa, her ailing mother, and her history where she grew up. The hints of magic are just that – hints. Other than the very beginning and a mysterious cliffhanger at the end, we don’t get much of the underlying supernatural elements in this issue. This works out in the story’s favor though because of how invested we get in Theresa’s character. The mystery around her arcane abilities is a genuinely compelling one, with Lemire bringing his unique use of dreamlike sequences and suspense to the pages of this new story. We only get brief glimpses of Theresa’s mystical connections, but they’re so intriguing due to both Lemire’s presentation and his work in making her an easy character to empathize with. After this first issue’s cliffhanger, the wait for #2 will be a long one.
Art Direction
So much of what works in Minor Arcana #1 stems from Jeff Lemire’s unmistakable visual style. The same approach that he used in his earlier works such as Essex County and Sweet Tooth, as well as more recently in Mazebook, is used again here in Arcana and to stellar effect. Lemire’s wiry linework and distinct character designs give the comic an atmosphere that switches from naturalistic to unnerving on the fly. His representation of a small town with a corner diner feels like the sort of thing we’ve all seen dozens of times, but that familiarity works in the story’s favor. As soon as the supernatural stuff kicks off, the atmosphere becomes dreary and dreamlike – and element Lemire mastered a long time ago. Lemire’s art has always had this effect of combining genuine charm with a sort of unnatural tone. His characters and animations are wonderfully detailed, almost spiting the sort of “low fidelity” style of his work. The lettering from frequent Lemire collaborator Steve Wands perfectly matches the atmosphere of the rest of the art, perfecting the reading experience. Overall, Minor Arcana has an unsurprisingly standout visual style.
Verdict
Minor Arcana #1 is yet another phenomenal debut from of the medium’s greatest talents. Jeff Lemire’s writing endears us to his cast of characters and makes us truly care for the protagonist, all while sucking us deeper into this mysterious world of the arcane she barely knows anything about herself. His visual work is both charming and unsettling, capturing an atmosphere that is unique almost entirely to Lemire’s stories. Be sure to grab this debut issue when it hits shelves on September 4th!
