Well, Saturday was meant to be a day at Thought Bubble in Leeds, one of the best comic conventions of the year. I went last year and had a great time.
So this year I was all ready to get going, bus and train across nice and early. And then I woke up this morning and felt like death only slightly warmed up. Probably a combination of too little sleep over the last week and the ongoing lurgy I'm unable to shake off. I felt sick and feverish when I woke up, head pounding, throat raspy. Lovely.
By mid afternoon it was a lot better, but I'd missed the event by then. Alas Thought Bubble - I shall have to wait another year.
And here we are again, another issue of Harker, another review (for the others try here). By now you can probably write these for yourself. But for those who haven’t been paying attention this is my standard description of Harker:
“Harker’s a great detective thriller with intriguing story, wonderful art, cracking dialogue and moments of laugh out loud comedy … an absolute triumph of a comic”
This issue is the third part of the second volume. You don’t need to read the first volume to enjoy this (although I’d obviously recommend it), likewise you don’t really need to read issues 7 & 8 before this one – but why deny yourself that pleasure? All you really need to know is on the inside front cover:
“Detective Chief Inspector Harker and his assistant, Detective Sergeant Critchley, specialise in cases of multiple homicide. Harker’s seaside holiday in Whitby is ruined by the brutal stabbing of mystery author Agatha Fletcher, who was at the hotel with her assistant Jasmine Burns to host a murder mystery evening.
Reluctant to deal with the murder case on his vacation, Harker calls in Critchley and Griffin, leaving them to deal with the investigation whilst he spends much of the day on the dodgems. Finally discovered by Critchley, Harker suggests that the case should be left to the local police – as it isn’t a multiple homicide, he feels it’s not a case they should be handling. Critchley agrees and decides to hand the investigation over to the local constabulary in the morning. But as our detectives stroll back to the hotel, a second corpse washes up by the bridge….“
The only other thing you really need to know is that Griffin is Harker’s favourite pathologist, although she has a healthy cynical and sarcastic attitude towards “Starsky and Hutch” as she’s taken to calling them.
This issue is another dialogue heavy issue – and we all know that that means lots of good opportunities for some great sarcastic, funny stuff from the cast:
(From Harker issue 9 by Gibson and Danks. Harker’s pathologist Griffin gets off on the wrong foot with the local DI. Not to worry, Harker will be along to put him in his place any moment. Oh, hold on – here he is now……….)
(Master of the sharp put-down, but also a man very protective of his own team is our DCI Harker. From Harker issue 9 by Gibson and Danks.)
It’s a hugely enjoyable issue, although so far we’re halfway through the volume and we’ve had just two murders and very little actual policing. But I have a feeling that Harker, Critchley and Griffin will come through in the end. They’re busy this issue making connections and identifying suspects – in between the sarcastic one-liners of course.
But the thing we have discovered this time around, especially with Harker’s desperate dash away from the murder last issue and his unwillingness to let the nastiness of his work intrude upon his Whitby retreat, is a little more of the characters of our leads. Harker’s character is becoming far more than a hard-nosed, gruff John Thaw mix of Regan and Morse. And the relationship between Harker and Critchley is slowly coming through as well. Take Harker’s protective attitude to his sergeant in the page above, or Critchley’s reciprocal determination to protect and support his boss in this scene:
(“So, yes, he’s off to have a think”. Critchley looks out for his boss, who’s off to decipher the clues to the double murder. From Harker issue 9 by Gibson and Danks.)
The art by Danks is, in all honesty, getting better and better. He’s refining his line as he goes along with Harker, stripping it all down to minimal lines and it works beautifully yet again. He’s also become rather sparing with his wonderful backgrounds – content sometimes to allow his figures to operate against a completely white backdrop when it’s necessary and then, when the story calls for it, back into lush, detailed, wonderfully busy backgrounds once again. Harker’s definitely not just a great story – it’s artistically great as well.
So, no surprise, I’m still going to be shouting, as loud as I can, for you all to be buying and reading Harker. Nine issues in and it’s still one of the books I enjoy most each month. Harker is available from the FPI store, selected comic shops (the good ones) and from Gibson and Danks directly. Support them, enjoy the book. I know I am.
Another one of those “never see this sort of things in US comics” type of books. A swashbuckling tale of Renaissance Rome; Brigands, mysterious exotic women, evil Catholic Cardinals attempting to take over the Papacy. Not quite the plot of the latest X-books crossover is it? Which is probably why I really rather enjoyed the Scorpion for at least one whole volume.
The book itself starts with an intriguing premise: What if the entire foundation of the Catholic church is merely a result of 9 powerful Roman families at the end of the Roman Empire deciding that Christianity is the best chance they have of remaining all-powerful? The descendants of the 9 families play an important role in the background to the Scorpion’s tale of power, lust and betrayal in Renaissance Rome.
(The Scorpion doing one of the things he does best. From The Scorpion Volume 1: The Devil’s Mark.)
This backdrop of political and religious intrigue is overwhelmed somewhat by the all action swashbuckling going on throughout the books with The Scorpion of the title fighting his way across the pages, pausing only for regular stops with what seems like every woman in Rome. And he’s not picky either; from lowest prostitute to society maiden he’ll bed them all and move on.
(The Scorpion doing the other thing he does so well. Aristocrat or common prostitute, all fall under his spell.)
So perhaps we’re looking at some sort of Italian 15th Century James Bond here? It shouldn’t be seen necessarily as a criticism because across the entire first volume (which, as with most Cinebook titles, actually contains two Scorpion volumes: The Scorpion and The Pope’s Secret) I had a tremendous time. The Scorpion gets drawn into a plot by the dastardly Cardinal Trebaldi (boo, hiss) to establish himself as the new Pope. There are lusty maidens and fearsome armoured monks, there are swordfights and plenty of them, there is religious hypocrisy and betrayal, daring escapes across rooftops and on horseback and plenty more.
(Cardinal Trebaldi: Not a nice man of God at all. From The Scorpion.)
It’s a really enjoyable escapist tale. Or at least the first volume was.
By the second volume, especially towards the end of it, I found myself getting just a little bored by it all. It really felt like the writer was just rehashing plot elements and spinning the whole thing out a little too much. What’s that? Another precarious situation for the Scorpion, surrounded again by those evil warrior monks and having to fight his way out to find himself holed up with just a busty wench for company? Sure, there were fun moments, but nothing like the enjoyment of the first volume. A real shame, especially as the series looks set for at least another volume or two. One would have been enough, maybe two if we’d have had a nice resolution to the story.
I’ve already reviewed Anna Mercury twice; (issue 1 and issue 2), so I’ll be quick here. This is some of what I said about issue 2:
With Anna Mercury #1 I put forward the hope that this was going to be one of the good ones and wasn’t going to repeat Black Summer’s trick of a great first issue followed by a huge comedown from issue two onwards. Certainly there were enough good moments in that first issue to raise my hopes. And enough hints in the book that this wasn’t going to be as straightforward a tale as some of his Avatar work.
And thankfully, with issue 2, I can safely say that this is definitely shaping up to be something very good indeed. The setup throughout issue 1 has paid off nicely, with Anna revealed to be acting as some cross dimensional secret agent type racing around trying to save the planet from some form of all out destruction. This is the big show and tell issue, with Ellis setting out the peculiar science behind the world in the first few pages of this issue. In fact it’s all conveniently explained, complete with easy to follow diagrams to the prime minister of the day by the head of Anna’s department. it seems that Anna works for a department tasked with keeping everything in order. Because Anna’s earth sits in the middle of the constellation project:
“Nine half constructed worlds hanging in invisible orbit around Earth. All of which have human beings on them. None of whom are aware of the other worlds or the existence of Earth. This constitutes the greatest mystery, and the greatest secret of our time.”
And with that reveal, Ellis makes Anna Mercury far more interesting than anything he’s written for Avatar so far.
(Anna Mercury in her best Matrix style leap. Ellis is back on form and the art by Facundo Percio isn’t bad either.)
And everything above written for issue 2 certainly holds true for the remaining three issues included here in the Cutter. In fact, once issue 2 is over, with Anna trying to figure the best way to prevent a one city’s super-gun wiping out the other city on this particular half constructed partial earth, the rest of the book is a hyperactive rush to finish, lots of racing around, lots of shooting things, kinetic artwork flowing freely. There’s only one major bit of downtime in the second half of the book as Anna and her boss sit down to brief the new Prime Minister on the situation he’s just walked into. Just like the conversation between the Prime Minister and Anna’s boss in issue 2, this time is used by Ellis to allow all his exposition to be thrown at us at once, detaching it from the action sequences in a simple yet effective way:
“In 1943, The USS Eldridge – three hundred feet long and twelve hundred tons of electromagnetically active metal – appeared right in the middle of New Ataraxia. It was kind of hard to miss. And it sat there for at least twenty minutes. Ataraxian society was irrevocably warped. God turned up in his own sailing boat and changed everything.”
Yep, the USS Eldridge. So you can see the sort of thing Ellis is going for here; this world gets royally screwed up when the Philadelphia Experiment works too well and with nine of these partial earths to play around with one wonders what famous conspiracy theory or mythical tech experiment Ellis will use next time. (I haven’t picked up any of the second Anna Mercury series yet).
(Pretty much the entire series in one page thematically: Anna running, fighting and swearing. Her boss and the Prime Minister having a chat about everything that’s going on. It’s a cliched formula for getting your story out, but it works in Anna Mercury. Art by Facundo Percio)
In the end, Anna Mercury is just pure fun escapist sci-fi spy thriller, very Matrix like but without all of the cod philosophy. Ellis is having a blast writing every sci-fi cliche he can think of lately throughout the various books he’s doing but it seems to be on Anna Mercury where it all comes together and works best. Similarly, the artwork by Facundo Percio, although very much “Avatar house style” (and if you read more than 3 Avatar books you know exactly what I’m talking about) and even though he takes a little while to settle and does have a few stumbles along the way, is some of the best colour work that’s graced Ellis’ Avatar material yet.
It’s by far the best thing he’s writing right now, yet even here there’s still the feeling that he’s not really stretching himself. On one hand it’s a sickening realisation that he’s got so much more in the tank. On the other hand I find myself getting frustrated with Ellis’ inability to really push himself to make truly great comics. Anna Mercury is bloody good stuff, but even here, I think Ellis can give us better. But for now, Anna Mercury will certainly do.
This is what Molly is wearing for her non-uniform day for Children In Need today. The most amazing thing about this?
I had NOTHING to do with it. The first I knew about it was last Sunday when Louise and Molly went shopping in York and came back with this. Obviously, Molly's aware of The Cure, it's been played to her fairly regularly since she was born after all. But I was stunned (in a very nice way) when she decided she wanted to buy this.
I felt really old the other day. Not that "oh I remember this song, gosh was it really 20 years ago" type old, but real, proper old. Molly had just gone off to school - she walks there and back on her own every day now, called for by her friends - and i went to brush my teeth. Looked in the mirror and didn't really recognise the old face looking back at me.
Horrible thing this having children - evil little reminders of our own mortality that they are.
She's so very horribly grown up now. And it's all happened in the last few months. One moment it seemed she was daddy's little girl and the next, all grown up. The walking to school and back is the major change, but it's in everything she does - whether it's making her own drinks, chatting on the phone, or just not needing to be around us parents as much anymore. Not nice. Well, not nice in that way - the only positive side to seeing her grow up is seeing her grow up so wonderfully well.
Bah, another week of feeling mah, another week of writing almost non-stop, desperately fighting the good (impossible) fight to clear some of the review shelf off and to top it all off, a week of computer fails at school to put me in a really down mood.
Which is why I forgot, again, to prep this piece..... and why, again I'm grateful to Joe Gordon over at the FPI blog for putting it all together so I can shamelessly copy and paste it.....
This time it's Matthew Badham finishing off his Herculean task of interviewing all of the major players in the UK comic events scene. With Thought Bubble Leeds happening this very weekend, we've rushed this one out midweek, enjoy....
Over the last few months the Forbidden Planet International blog, Down the Tubes and Fictions have been cross-posting Q&As by Matt Badham with the organisers of various British comic conventions. Our aim is to give the conventions themselves some well-deserved publicity and also to, hopefully, spark a wider debate about what’s good and bad about the convention circuit in this country. (Answers have been edited only in terms of spelling, punctuation and grammar, and not for style or content.)
For this ninth instalment of the series, Matt chatted to Lisa Wood of the Thought Bubble comic convention, just head of this year’s Thought Bubble, which kicks off this weekend in Leeds. (NB: this will be the last of these interviews for the foreseeable future)
MB: Please tell us about a little about the history of the Thought Bubble.
Lisa: Thought Bubble started in 2007. I had been toying with the idea of running some kind of comics based exhibition or a series of workshops and the idea grew from there. I was really keen to bring a comics festival to the UK that was in the same vein as some of the European festivals; something that wasn’t just a convention but a celebration of comics on lots of different levels.
I feel really passionately that comics should be recognized as a valid art form like in France, when they are called the ninth art and regarded very highly. The public’s perception of comics and graphic novels is changing at the moment due to the popularity of comics-based movies. We are not only seeing superhero comic movies at the moment but films such as Road to Perdition, Scott Pilgrim and A History of Violence too, which are all based on great graphic novels.
MB: How is the Thought Bubble funded, by ticket sales, the exhibitors, a grant, some other means or a combination of these?
Lisa: Thought Bubble is funded by Ticket sales and exhibitors. We have also just found out that we have Arts Council funding which is amazing! It is great to know serious funding bodies such as The Arts Council are recognizing the benefits of comic books for learning and literacy. Hopefully this is the beginning of something really special.
MB: What are Thought Bubble’s overall aims?
Lisa: Our aim has always been to bring comics and graphic novels to the mainstream, and to show they can be an excellent educational tool to be embraced by libraries, schools and local councils. We want to put on a great show celebrating the amazing art and writing in comics.
MB: Who is Thought Bubble aimed at? What sort of punters do you hope to attract? Are you family-friendly?
Lisa: We are very family-friendly. We pretty much aim the con at everyone! We try and programme events that will appeal to all ages and types. At our Alea event we host panels, screenings and talks, which are for adults. However, we also run lots of workshops and events especially for young people! We recognise the importance of introducing young people to comic books so the art form can keep growing and growing.
(Yishan Li taking the first Thought Bubble workshop of 2009, pic borrowed from the TB blog)
MB: How effective have you been in getting those kind of people to attend?
Lisa: Because we run as part of the Leeds International Film Festival we tend to get a wide range of people attending our events. We also tend to get people coming along who are just curious, which is great for us because we have the chance to introduce newcomers to this wonderful art-form, this is what we always intended to do.
MB: Can you give a projected (or actual) attendance figure for the Thought Bubble?
Lisa: Figures for our festival and one day convention were: first year convention 500, festival as a whole 1100, our second year convention was 1500, festival as a whole 2500 and we are hoping this year will be 2200 for our convention and 3000 for our festival as a whole.
MB: What lessons have you learned during your time running Thought Bubble, in terms of its marketing and advertising?
Lisa: I think we are still learning how best to approach these areas. We will probably concentrate more on online advertising this year rather than printed matter, just because costs can be so high. The way we have approached this in the past is where possible find in-kind sponsorship. We have worked with various magazines to promote ourselves and in return we have helped promote them. We also work with various shops around West Yorkshire to promote our event as much as possible. Getting people on board to help us spread the word and our brand is invaluable.
MB: Do you use emerging technologies to spread the word about Thought Bubble? Do you have a website or blog, or use email mailing lists?
Lisa: We are really into using social networking sites to spread the word. We are also currently setting up a Youtube account, where we can post our favourite clips and hold competitions. We also have a Wordpress blog that is updated daily at the moment and a Twitter. Our next goal is to record all of our workshops and talks to build up an online library of educational information for anyone and everyone to access.
MB: What about print? Do you use print advertising, have a newsletter, anything like that?
Lisa: Because these cost tend to be fairly high we try and avoid buying adverts in magazines and work on in-kind deals as I mentioned before
MB: What’s the mix in terms of exhibitors at your con? Do you even have exhibitors?
Lisa: We have over 170 exhibitors. The mix is usually, small press 50%, guests and pros 20% and retailers 30%. It changes year on year though.
(last year’s over-16s comic art competition winner by and (c) Kristyna Baczynski)
MB: What are your thoughts on the small press comics scene in this country? Does Thought Bubble support the small press and what form does that support take?
Lisa: We absolutely support the small press scene. We love it! We hold weekly small press features on our blog, highlighting some of our favourite small press people.
MB: How much are the tickets for the Thought Bubble? How did you arrive at that price? Please tell us about any concessions.
Lisa: Our tickets are £8 full price this year, half price for cosplayers and under-12s are free. For this price you get to spend the whole day listening to various talks and have the chance to take part in workshops, watch screenings, meet artists and writers and ask for sketches. It is a tough call trying to keep prices low. venue costs can be really high. There are also lots of hidden costs such as insurance and trading licence, the stage, tables. Running a convention can end up being very pricey. When dealing with ticket prices you need to look at your own costs and what your competition is charging.
(Dan Lester and Oliver Lambden at TB, pic from my 2008 report)
MB: How much are exhibitor tables for the Thought Bubble? Again, how did you arrive at that figure?
Lisa: Again we try and keep this low where possible, especially for small press as most of the time they end up losing money attending cons. Our small press and professional tables are £40, retailer and publisher tables are £60.
MB: Do you run workshops/events/panels at the Thought Bubble? Please tell us about those and how they are organised.
Lisa: Most or our programme is full of free workshops for young people and adults, our Arts Council funding helps us to do this. We invite industry professionals to come along and let people know how they write or draw and how to get in to the business. Our workshops have been incredibly successful, with most of them selling out before our brochure comes out. So far workshops have been run on a voluntary basis by industry professionals who are kind enough to give us and the public their time.
MB: As you’ve been kind enough to answer these questions, please fell free to big the Thought Bubble up a bit. Tell us what you do well, what the Thought Bubble’s main attractions are and why our readers should attend the next one.
Lisa: Thought Bubble is a four-day annual event which celebrates sequential art in all its forms, including everything from superheroes to independent small press. We are a non-profit making organisation dedicated to promoting comics and graphic novels as an important cultural art form. Taking place at a variety of venues across the city, our aim is to cater to both long-time comic book fans and those who have never picked up a graphic novel before!
Thought Bubble will take place 19th -- 22nd November 2009 with a centrepiece one-day convention on Saturday 21st. Thought Bubble will include art and writing based workshops for young people and adults, panels and talks lead by industry professionals and a programme of sequential art related film screenings. The special one-day convention includes an incredible line up of leading artists and writers, and over 150 tables selling comics and merchandise. The day will also feature portfolio viewings and competitions. This promises to be one of the best events of its kind in the UK, where you’ll be able to meet some of your favourite comic book creators and browse the huge selection of memorabilia on sale -- brought to you by the biggest and best exhibitors and dealers from across the country. Keep an eye on the website for more updates, or join us on MySpace or Facebook to share your thoughts and ideas.
FPI would like to thank Lisa for taking time out from a busy schedule to talk to us and Matt for a fascinating series of interviews. This year’s Thought Bubble takes place in Leeds from the 19th to the 22nd of December (you can read Richard’s report on last year’s TB here on the blog). You can read the previous Q&As with other British comics con organisers in this series here on the blog: Comica’s Paul Gravett, Patrick Findlay of the UK Web’n’Mini Comix Thing, Jimi Gherkin of the Alternative Fair Press chats with Matt, Matt talks with Bristol’s Mike Allwood, Hi-Ex’s Vicky Stonebridge, BICS’ Shane Chebsey, Caption’s Jay Eales and LUC’s Oli Smith.
Just as we were preparing this interview the Thought Bubble crew updated us on a whole raft of (mostly free) comics classes that will be running during the weekend for children and adults:
Digital Colouring Masterclass with Peter Doherty. 14:00-15:00, Carrigeworks, FREE, 16+. Famous for his work on The Wachowski Brothers’ Shaolin Cowboy, and Judge Death, Peter will take participants through the stages of how to digitally colour line art in photoshop. A basic understanding of photoshop is required. Places are limited, book soon to avoid disappointment, email thoughtbubblefestival@googlemail.com
Sequential Art and Literacy Workshop. 14:00-15:30, Leeds Art Gallery, 12-18 year olds, FREE. Award-winning artist, curator, and academic Sarah Lightman, who trained at ‘Slade School of Art’, will go through the stages of creating your very own publication. She will explain how young people can use the comic format to reflect their own feelings and experiences. Places are limited, book soon to avoid disappointment, email thoughtbubblefestival@googlemail.com
Yishan Studio Shojo Manga Workshop with Yishan Li. 14:30-15:30, Leeds Central Library, 7-12 year olds, FREE. Yishan Li, a leading manga artist, and creator of the Yishan Studio ‘How To Draw Manga’ books, will run this fun workshop for younger children. Yishan will take them through the steps of how to create characters and figures. Places are limited, book soon to avoid disappointment, email thoughtbubblefestival@googlemail.com
Creation of Computer Game Concept Design. 14:50-16:50, Leeds Central Library, 16+, FREE. Steve Beaumont, character design and storyboard artist, will look at how the two are produced within the video games industry. There will be an opportunity to work from a typical client brief to create a gaming character. Steve will also touch on what the gaming industry looks for to give you a heads up in this ever growing field. Places are limited, book soon to avoid disappointment, email thoughtbubblefestival@googlemail.com
Manga Character Art Workshop with Emma Vieceli. 14:50-15:50, Leeds Central Library, 12-18 year olds, FREE. Sweatdrop Studios’ Emma, is well known for her presenting on Anime Network, and her fantastic art on the Manga Shakespeare series. In this session, Emma will demonstrate techniques used in manga styled pages and show participants the foundations needed to create their own characters. This workshop will be fun and informal. Places are limited, book soon to avoid disappointment, email thoughtbubblefestival@googlemail.com
Frank Quitely Art Masterclass. 15:15-16:45, Carriageworks, 16+, £5 Entry. Thought Bubble is delighted to welcome Frank Quitely, one of the world’s most respected comic book artists, for a special insider look at his art. Frank is best known for his work on Grant Morrison’s New X-Men, Batman and Robin, and We3. Talking to Peter Dohert of 2000AD fame, Frank will reveal the creative process he employs in this fascinating masterclass. For tickets go to www.thoughtbubblefestival.com
Young People’s Comics Writing Masterclass with Adam Lowe. 16:00-17:00, Leeds Central Library, 12-18 year olds, FREE. Local author Adam Lowe’s first novel, Troglodyte Rose, mixes sequential art and prose. In this workshop for young people, he gives tips on writing scripts for comics, including dialogue, pace, and visual cues in this fun and informal masterclass. Places are limited, book soon to avoid disappointment, email thoughtbubblefestival@googlemail.com
Darwyn Cooke has taken Richard Stark’s hard boiled criminal novel and perfectly distilled it’s elements into possibly the best crime graphic novel you’ll have read for a long time. The art’s exceptional, as you may have expected from Cooke. But this beats anything he’s done up to this point. Gone are the nostalgic renderings of books like New Frontier, he even goes past his previous best of his glorious Spirit tales. This is Cooke’s artistic idea honed to a fine point and executed with incredible, minimalist noir style across the page. It’s a truly beautiful book.
Richard Stark was the pseudonym for Donald E Westlake. You’ve probably seen one of his Parker tales without even realising it was a Parker tale since Westlake never allowed Parker’s name to be used in the adaptations of his work. Point Blank with lee Marvin – that was Parker. Payback with Mel Gibson – Parker. But tellingly, with Darwyn Cooke’s adaptation Westlake finally gave his permission. Sadly Westlake died in 2008 never knowing what a marvellous job Darwyn Cooke was to make of Parker.
This is real hard boiled noir. Parker is the epitome of the cold hearted bastard. Betrayed on an arms deal by his woman and his partners in crime, he’s left for dead. But he makes his way back, single minded and bent on revenge against those who’ve wronged him and stolen his ill gotten gains. I’m not going to give any of the plot away – it’s one of those books you really need to read and me blowing the story would only spoil it for you. And in truth, it’s hardly revolutionary storytelling. You’ve seen the plot many, many times over. Indeed, if you’ve watched either movie you’ll recognise elements of them here, particularly in Point Blank. But the plot is almost incidental to Parker. It’s an inexorable march towards revenge and retribution, with Parker leaving a trail of dead bodies in his wake, cold, heartless, driven and utterly amoral. Pure hard boiled stuff.
(Parker gets himself together, ready to take back what he considers rightfully his. Darwyn Cooke’s artwork just perfectly encapsulating the sheer will for revenge of the man. From The Hunter.)
Darwyn Cooke’s adaptation must have ditched huge amounts of the source material to have condensed a book into 140 pages, but you won’t notice, such is the perfection of storytelling that Cooke pulls off here. It’s split into four books, each incredibly impressive in it’s own way. There’s a preview of the first few pages at the IDW site and it will give you some idea of just how good Parker is. Those first 20 pages, almost wordless, with Parker making his way back into New York, regaining his life, getting himself ready for the job at hand are quite brilliant examples of how to tell a story on a comics page. After that the tale is told of betrayals and revenge, with Parker single-mindedly working his way through those who have wronged him, stopping at nothing to extract revenge and recover the ill gotten gains he considers rightfully his. If I had to pick a moment though it would be the almost heartstopping scene where Parker finally tracks down the cause of all his ills:
(“That’s when he saw Parker coming through the bedroom window”. Chilling storytelling from Cooke in Parker: The Hunter.)
The one thing that did jar slightly is that cover. Compared with some of the stellar artwork inside the book it’s actually not that good. A minor quibble perhaps. Because once you get inside the art is just sublime; black, white and blue throughout. The purist in me was wondering all the way through what this might have been like in strict noir black and white, but the blue adds something extra, something quite wonderful.
It’s July and this may well be the book of the year. A must for anyone with a penchant for Chandler-esque heroes and hard boiled storytelling. The great news is that this is just the first of four planned Parker graphic novels by Cooke. Book 2 is out in 2010 – I’ve no idea when, but I’ll be eagerly awaiting it. Something this near perfect will no doubt be worth the wait.
Welcome to life at Bruton Mansions, Pocklington. I'm Richard Bruton and Fictions is where I write about anything and everything.
I write an awful lot about comics, both here and on the FPI Blog; the 31st most popular blog in the UK according to this. So if you're reading this and want to send some comics for review, get in touch.
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