Zeb Aslam
Mar 7, 2004, 04:16 am
<a href="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/covers/ind/d@174.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/covers/ind/d@174t.jpg" align=left alt="DEAD@17 #4"></a>Reviewer: Zeb Aslam, shrinkingleviathan@hotmail.com
Quick Rating: Great!
Story Title: Dead@17 - Part 4
Buffy...I mean Nara gets a new lease on life
Written By: Josh Howard
Pencilled By: Josh Howard
Inked By: Josh Howard
Colors By: Josh Howard
Letters By: Greg Gatlin
Publisher: Viper Comics
The ultimate battle between good and evil is about to be fought in the most unlikely of places, and the outcome will depend on the choices of one teenage girl. In the small suburb of Darlington Hills, two friends, Nara Kilday and Hazy Foss, are about to be caught in the middle of a conflict that will change their lives forever. This was the promo blurb in the first issue of this series, and to a great extent, it extends to encompass the very focus of the series. Dead@17 is a book about Nara and Hazy…two girls who have been best friends since they were 12. When Nara dies, Hazy thinks it’s all over…until the night that zombies attack and Nara returns to save her friend.
Ok, it’s really hard to review this issue as much of it is spoiler material, so bear with me. This series has been delightful. Nara is one of the most believable characters in comics today…and that’s saying a lot for a girl who died, came back to life and served as the temporary storage device for an otherworldly entity. Now, as with most of my reviews, I’ll get the gripes out of the way first, and then move on to the good stuff…which, trust me, there is quite a bit of.
While reading this issue, three things practically jumped out to me. These three things, albeit minor, really affected my overall enjoyment of the book. The first one was the sheer lack of emotion exhibited by some of the characters during the course of this issue. Nara’s ex-boyfriend, Elijah sees his current girlfriend, Lisa gutted and all he can say is “Too Bad.” I’m sorry, but in a book which prides itself on believable and real characters (and rightfully so) this was something akin to a bucket of cold water being thrown at me. This is supposedly a ‘good’ guy, someone we are supposed to sympathize with, and he is so callous that all I kept thinking was that this guy deserved a heckuva lot more punishment then he got this issue. The end tried to alleviate this problem, but it did a poor job, and I was not satisfied. The second problem was the coloring. Although for an indie book this had fantastic colors, and beautiful shadings, when Nara and Bolaboog are having a battle of wills, the font and colors of Bolaboog’s speech were the same color as the background. This obviously had me resorting to a lot of guess-work to figure out what exactly Bolaboog was saying. This was a small but noticeable blemish on an otherwise fine coloring job. The third and final thing which bothered me about this issue was something which many people probably didn’t even notice. This was the lack of background material going into this issue. I read the last issue some time ago, and I read something like 20 books a month, so it was a bit difficult to remember what exactly was going on. The lack of a recap page was very telling, and while it was easy to get back into the book after 4-5 pages, for someone just joining in, this could be a major problem. Hopefully in the second mini coming out in a few months, this will be amended.
Now we come to the good stuff. This book, for some reason, reminds me heavily of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. One girl who is the chosen one, a council of mysterious people who try to protect her with her only reason for living being her friends at most times. This is refreshing to see in a comic in today’s market as it focused more on the individual characters and their feelings and emotions than the action. This book is an excellent example of the impact horror comics are making on the marketplace again. With Crossgen’s Route 666, and this book, it’s nice to see that the horror genre is still going strong in comics today. The Protectorate also has to be the coolest new mysterious group in quite a while. I hope they get a mini themselves sometime. The best part is, that since this is a book that is entirely under the control of one creator, I know that whatever happens will make sense in terms of continuity, something which I have sorely missed in Marvel/DC titles.
Coming to the art, Howard has a fresh style which is refreshing, and a delight to behold. His art is like a mesh between manga and western comics, yet not exactly manga. It’s hard to explain, but trust me, it’s good. And the coloring is perfect, showcasing darkness in places which require it, such as the final confrontation between the Protectorate and Boloboog’s forces, and light, and brightness in places which require it, such as the end when Nara receives a gift from Raddemer(an agent of the Protectorate assigned to assist Nara.)
Overall, I’d say this book accomplishes everything it sets out to do. It’s funny, engaging, and most importantly, has characters whom you actually want to know more about at the end of the issue. Howard seems to appreciate this and has left just enough subplots to keep me coming back for a second helping. Raddemer’s secret and relation to Nara is hinted at near the end, although it’ll be a while before we know if the hint is real, or just a red herring. Nara’s new life is also something which is left open-ended and leaves many avenues that can be explored. And finally, the mysterious powers Nara displays are left completely unexplained, an annoying prospect, yet one that makes me impatient…in a good way. All I can say is that if you haven’t read this book, do yourself a favor and pick up the trade when it comes out, and be sure to read the second mini. Trust me, you won’t regret it.
ART:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipnone.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipnone.jpg
STORY:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/viphalf.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipnone.jpg
ISSUE OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipnone.jpg
Buy comics online from X-World Comics and save! (http://x-worldcomics.com/)
Quick Rating: Great!
Story Title: Dead@17 - Part 4
Buffy...I mean Nara gets a new lease on life
Written By: Josh Howard
Pencilled By: Josh Howard
Inked By: Josh Howard
Colors By: Josh Howard
Letters By: Greg Gatlin
Publisher: Viper Comics
The ultimate battle between good and evil is about to be fought in the most unlikely of places, and the outcome will depend on the choices of one teenage girl. In the small suburb of Darlington Hills, two friends, Nara Kilday and Hazy Foss, are about to be caught in the middle of a conflict that will change their lives forever. This was the promo blurb in the first issue of this series, and to a great extent, it extends to encompass the very focus of the series. Dead@17 is a book about Nara and Hazy…two girls who have been best friends since they were 12. When Nara dies, Hazy thinks it’s all over…until the night that zombies attack and Nara returns to save her friend.
Ok, it’s really hard to review this issue as much of it is spoiler material, so bear with me. This series has been delightful. Nara is one of the most believable characters in comics today…and that’s saying a lot for a girl who died, came back to life and served as the temporary storage device for an otherworldly entity. Now, as with most of my reviews, I’ll get the gripes out of the way first, and then move on to the good stuff…which, trust me, there is quite a bit of.
While reading this issue, three things practically jumped out to me. These three things, albeit minor, really affected my overall enjoyment of the book. The first one was the sheer lack of emotion exhibited by some of the characters during the course of this issue. Nara’s ex-boyfriend, Elijah sees his current girlfriend, Lisa gutted and all he can say is “Too Bad.” I’m sorry, but in a book which prides itself on believable and real characters (and rightfully so) this was something akin to a bucket of cold water being thrown at me. This is supposedly a ‘good’ guy, someone we are supposed to sympathize with, and he is so callous that all I kept thinking was that this guy deserved a heckuva lot more punishment then he got this issue. The end tried to alleviate this problem, but it did a poor job, and I was not satisfied. The second problem was the coloring. Although for an indie book this had fantastic colors, and beautiful shadings, when Nara and Bolaboog are having a battle of wills, the font and colors of Bolaboog’s speech were the same color as the background. This obviously had me resorting to a lot of guess-work to figure out what exactly Bolaboog was saying. This was a small but noticeable blemish on an otherwise fine coloring job. The third and final thing which bothered me about this issue was something which many people probably didn’t even notice. This was the lack of background material going into this issue. I read the last issue some time ago, and I read something like 20 books a month, so it was a bit difficult to remember what exactly was going on. The lack of a recap page was very telling, and while it was easy to get back into the book after 4-5 pages, for someone just joining in, this could be a major problem. Hopefully in the second mini coming out in a few months, this will be amended.
Now we come to the good stuff. This book, for some reason, reminds me heavily of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. One girl who is the chosen one, a council of mysterious people who try to protect her with her only reason for living being her friends at most times. This is refreshing to see in a comic in today’s market as it focused more on the individual characters and their feelings and emotions than the action. This book is an excellent example of the impact horror comics are making on the marketplace again. With Crossgen’s Route 666, and this book, it’s nice to see that the horror genre is still going strong in comics today. The Protectorate also has to be the coolest new mysterious group in quite a while. I hope they get a mini themselves sometime. The best part is, that since this is a book that is entirely under the control of one creator, I know that whatever happens will make sense in terms of continuity, something which I have sorely missed in Marvel/DC titles.
Coming to the art, Howard has a fresh style which is refreshing, and a delight to behold. His art is like a mesh between manga and western comics, yet not exactly manga. It’s hard to explain, but trust me, it’s good. And the coloring is perfect, showcasing darkness in places which require it, such as the final confrontation between the Protectorate and Boloboog’s forces, and light, and brightness in places which require it, such as the end when Nara receives a gift from Raddemer(an agent of the Protectorate assigned to assist Nara.)
Overall, I’d say this book accomplishes everything it sets out to do. It’s funny, engaging, and most importantly, has characters whom you actually want to know more about at the end of the issue. Howard seems to appreciate this and has left just enough subplots to keep me coming back for a second helping. Raddemer’s secret and relation to Nara is hinted at near the end, although it’ll be a while before we know if the hint is real, or just a red herring. Nara’s new life is also something which is left open-ended and leaves many avenues that can be explored. And finally, the mysterious powers Nara displays are left completely unexplained, an annoying prospect, yet one that makes me impatient…in a good way. All I can say is that if you haven’t read this book, do yourself a favor and pick up the trade when it comes out, and be sure to read the second mini. Trust me, you won’t regret it.
ART:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipnone.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipnone.jpg
STORY:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/viphalf.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipnone.jpg
ISSUE OVERALL:
http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipfull.jpg http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/reviews/vipnone.jpg
Buy comics online from X-World Comics and save! (http://x-worldcomics.com/)