Anathema #1 (Tiny Behemoth)
From 2012.
So this is another good one, some excellent art from Christopher Mooneyham and writing from Rachel Deering. I list Mooneyham first because while Deering's work is good throughout, it takes until the end of the issue to understand what truly makes the main character significant.
This is a story about magic. Dark magic. It becomes a little like The Crow, a classic tale of mystical transformation and revenge. But I got a strong Harry Potter vibe from it as well, especially in the telling of how the villain transforms himself into a being of seemingly unlimited power.
I won't use names in this review, however, because naming is not one of Anathema's strong suits. By the end of this issue, even the title doesn't seem particularly appropriate. I'll go ahead and tell you what the main character becomes: a werewolf.
And that's pretty awesome and all, because the main character is a woman. Another of the unorthodox choices Deering makes is the main character being a lesbian. This is unusual enough, but it's also a (vaguely) period rather than present-day. Are we at the point where something will get readers just because of sexual orientation? Then maybe that's your hook, if you consider that a good thing.
It's another project from the comiXology Submit bundle I purchased that may perhaps be a much greater showcase of potential than itself a notable creation. The naming issues is one thing. I appreciated finally finding out why I should care about the main character, but that might have been nice to know other than a general sense that I should care just because of general sympathy for her situation. As such, the most interesting thing about the issue is the dark magic sequence.
And that's as much because of Anathema as my interest in Harry Potter.
I have no idea how the rest of the series (it's six issues long) plays out. I suspect competently, if this issue is any indication. But I would certainly love to see more from Deering and Mooneyham. From Deering, hopefully something of an improvement over a solid foundation.
I read that yesterday. It was OK, but not really enough that I'd want to read more but then werewolves don't really do it for me. You should have referenced "The Return of Bruce Wayne" when he was similarly in Puritanical times and there was some junk about dark magic and witches, though no werewolves, which would have been awesome.
ReplyDeleteI will eagerly await your review of "Boobage" and "Bikini Bare" or whatever it's called.
I used Comixology and loved it, but then my account went whoosh one day and now I have none of those many, many comics I purchased. Which is too bad, because I was really beginning to explore stuff I never would have bought in the store before. Oh well, I'm sure I'll pick it up again someday.
ReplyDeleteNow that I've lost two different physical collections, I don't fear digital loss as much as I used to. If it happens, it happens. I've used PayPal funds for recent purchases, but I started out with the freebies. I almost signed up for regular installments from comics I want to follow year-round, but comiXology's lack of Dark Horse put a crimp on that. I don't want a source that doesn't cover everything. But it's useful all the same. I never would have read any of these smaller titles, and there seems to be some good material in the mix.
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