Review: WAYWARD #1

WAYWARD #1
IMAGE COMICS – @ImageComics

STORY: Jim Zub – @jimzub
ART: Steve Cummings
COLORS: John Rauch and Jim Zub
LETTERS: Marshall Dillon
COVER: Steve Cummings and Ross A. Campbell
VARIANT COVER:  Alina Urusov; Jeff “Chamba” Cruz; Adam Warren and John Rauch
28pp, Color, $3.50 U.S.

Additional material by Zack Davisson and Kalman Andrasofszky

Jim Zub sent the ComicBookBin a PDF copy of the first issue of his new comic book series, Wayward, published by Image Comics.  I reviewed it for the Bin and am now posting a slightly altered version of that review for you, dear readers, on I Reads You.

Wayward is an intriguing new fantasy comic book series from writer Jim Zub (Skullkickers, Suicide Squad: Amanda Waller) and penciller Steve Cummings (Legends of the Dark Knight, Deadshot) and published by Image Comics.  The upcoming series focuses on a teen girl trying to start a new life only to find herself confronted by the ancient creatures that lurk in the shadows of Tokyo.

Wayward #1 (“Chapter One”) opens as Rori Lane arrives in Japan from Ireland.  She is the child of a Japanese mother and an Irish father.  Her parents divorced, and although she initially stayed in Ireland, she is now moving to Japan to live with her mother.

Moving halfway across the world from Ireland to make a new home means that Rori will have to make some cultural adjustments, but she is game.  Things are going well, and it seems as if she and her mother can live together.  However, things take a turn for the weird when Rori begins glimpsing signs, creatures, and other things that no one else can see.  Then, there is Ayane...

It seems as if the selling point of Wayward is to compare it to Buffy the Vampire Slayer.  I received a PDF copy for review from series writer, Jim Zub, and on one page of the PDF is the tagline, “Buffy the Vampire Slayer for a new generation.”  On the same page, Hellboy is referenced.  With the comparisons/references to Buffy and Hellboy, you might think Wayward is a Dark Horse Comics title.  In truth, Wayward's first issue makes a good first step towards being the long-running fantasy franchise that both Buffy and Hellboy are.

However, Wayward does also resemble, to one extent or another, urban fantasy comics published by DC Comics' imprint, Vertigo (particularly Crossing Midnight), and by VIZ Media (the sublime Natsume's Book of Friends).  In fact, the manga and Japanese comparisons are appropriate as Wayward's pencil artist, Steve Cummings, drew the OEL manga (American manga) titles, Pantheon High and Star Trek: The Manga, for TOKYOPOP.

Whether the creators hope for their new comic book to inherit the mantle of Buffy the Vampire Slayer or not, we can keep discussing in the future.  What I can say is that Wayward is a series with promise and with a promising lead character.  Rori Lane is the kind of misfit who isn't afraid of the big, mean world.  She doesn't seem like a young woman ready to run away, and in that, she is like Buffy.  Zub uses internal dialogue (via caption boxes) both to endear her to us and to make her journey of discovery our journey also.  I can tell by this winning first issue that some readers will be glad to be Rori's Scooby gang, and, if need be, her BPRD.  I am one of them.

The art by Steve Cummings, John Rauch, and Jim Zub is colorful and vibrant.  Wayward's Tokyo might be a crowded modern city, but it isn't drab or dull; the monsters in the shadows will make sure of that.  Cummings' storytelling is clean and straight-forward, which makes the magic and mystery stand out.

I think that Wayward will be different from the other titles that Image is publishing, and that's a good thing.  I think the Young Adult novel has finally made it to comics in the form of Wayward, and I think it will be one of the standout new titles of the year.

A-

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.

Review: NATSUME’S BOOK OF FRIENDS Volume 16

NATSUME’S BOOK OF FRIENDS, VOL. 16
VIZ MEDIA – @VIZMedia

CARTOONIST: Yuki Midorikawa
TRANSLATION & ENGLISH ADAPTATION: Lillian Olsen
LETTERS: Sabrina Heep
ISBN: 978-1-4215-6782-2; paperback (June 2014), Rated “T” for “Teen”
196pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S. $12.99 CAN, £6.99 UK

One of my favorite manga is Natsume’s Book of Friends, created by mangaka, Yuki Midorikawa.  I think it is also one of the best comic books published in North America the past three years.

Natsume’s Book of Friends focuses on Takashi Natsume.  He is a high school boy who can see the spirits and demons called “yokai.”  This ability has been a curse and has set him apart from others.  Takashi, an orphaned teen, finds a stable home with Tôko and Shigeru Fujiwara, a kindly couple who are distant relatives.

Natsume also has a companion in Nyanko-Sensei, a guardian yokai.  Takashi learns that he has inherited two things from his mysterious grandmother, Reiko Natsume: “the Sight” and her “Book of Friends,” a tome in which Reiko wrote the names of yokai.

As Natsume’s Book of Friends, Vol. 16 (Chapters 64 to 67) opens, Natsume discovers strange, graffiti-like writing on the blackboard in his second period classroom.  While he engages that mystery, he meets his friend, Taki Tohru.  Taki can see yokai when they enter one of her spell circles.  She recently discovered a spell circle created by her late grandfather, and she used it to help a yokai.  This yokai, however, still remains near Taki’s house, and if he doesn’t want revenge, Natsume wonders, what does he want?

Next, Natsume visits Kaname Tanuma, his friend who can sense when yokai are present.  Kaname is going to visit his Aunt Satomi, who is remodeling an inn she owns and operates.  She wants some help cleaning the place for a few days.  Two of their school friends, Nishimura and Kitamoto, join Natsume and Kaname on a trip to the inn to work in exchange for room and board.  Not long after arriving, Natsume discovers the presence of a yokai that has stolen something important, endangering all their lives.

[This volume includes a bonus story, “Out of Season Blossoms.”]

As I have stated before, I had no idea that I would like the Natsume’s Book of Friends manga so much after I read the first volume of the English adaptation a few years ago.  This unique manga is the kind of literary fantasy that would fit in at Vertigo, the DC Comics’ imprint which focuses on adult-oriented fantasy comics (among other genres).

It would also be at home with juvenile and young adult graphic novels offered by publishers like First Second Books and Scholastic.  In fact, if Neil Gaiman was listed as the author of Natsume’s Book of Friends, this series would already be a bestseller, be a multiple Eisner Award-winner, and have won at least one Hugo Award.  The film or television rights would have been snapped up after the first graphic novel was published.

Instead, Natsume’s Book of Friends seems largely unknown outside of manga fans.  I wonder what the highest position on the New York Times bestselling manga list is that Natsume’s Book of Friends has achieved.

Natsume’s Book of Friends Volume 16 is one of the volumes that are perfect for new readers.  Neither of the two main stories (each running two chapters) involves the series’ internal mythology beyond the fact that Taki and Kaname are reoccurring characters.  Vol. 16 is a good example of the wonderful sense of magic and enchantment this series offers, and it proves that this series should be a big hit.

A+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux


The text is copyright © 2014 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for syndication rights and fees.

Review: AKANEIRO #1

AKANEIRO #1
DARK HORSE COMICS – @DarkHorseComics

STORY: Justin Aclin
ART: Vasilis Lolos
COLORS: Michael Atiyeh
LETTERS: Michael Heisler
COVER: Shu Yan
28pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (May 2013)

“The Path of Cloak and Wolf” Part 1 of 3

American McGee is a game designer perhaps best known as the designer of American McGee's Alice and for Spicy Horse, his Shanghai-based independent video game developer. McGee and Spicy Horse’s latest game is Akaneiro: Demon Hunters, a re-envisioning of Red Riding Hood set in the world of Japanese folklore.

Dark Horse Comics is producing a comic book adaptation of Akaneiro: Demon Hunters, entitled Akaneiro. The series is written by Justin Aclin and drawn by Vasilis Lolos.

Akaneiro #1 opens on Yomi Island, the home of the Ainu people, who were the first to settle Nippon. The island is beset by yokai, who will destroy humanity if too many enter the world. The Red Hunters of the Order of Akane hunt and kill yokai, maintaining a balance, but the Ainu and Red Hunters, at best, only tolerate each other.

Kani is a half-Ainu girl (on her late mother’s side) who lives with her father, a shabby ronin. Her lineage makes her an outcast to the Ainu, but an Ainu ceremony, the Iomante, will change Kani’s life.

I can’t tell how much Little Red Riding Hood is in Akaneiro, but the influences of feudal Japan-set fiction, as well as Japanese folklore and mythology are clear. Honestly, I did not find Akaneiro interesting at first, but once Kani begins her journey, the story takes a nice, wicked turn. At that turning point, it seems as if the Japanese folklore aspect lessens. Now, Akaneiro has a Sam Raimi-Army of Darkness vibe.

Two things to keep me coming back are, first, artist Vasilis Lolos’ peculiar, but compelling drawing style. The second thing is that the part of the story that begins in the last seven pages is just too good to be left hanging.

B+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux

Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan - Conflict

I read Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, Vol. 13: Conflict

I posted a review at ComicBookBin (which has free smart phone apps and comics).

Review: NATSUME’S BOOK OF FRIENDS, VOL. 12

NATSUME’S BOOK OF FRIENDS, VOL. 12
VIZ MEDIA

CARTOONIST: Yuki Midorikawa
TRANSLATION & ENGLISH ADAPTATION: Lillian Olsen
LETTERS: Sabrina Heep
ISBN: 978-1-4215-4231-7; paperback, Rated “T” for “Teen”
192pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S. $12.99 CAN, £6.99 UK

Yuki Midorikawa is a Japanese female mangaka (manga artist). Her best known work is Natsume’s Book of Friends, a fantasy manga. The series began being serialized in the shojo manga magazine, LaLa DX (from publisher Hakusensha), in 2005. As of 2008, Natsume’s Book of Friends appears in another shojo magazine, LaLa.

The series stars troubled high school student Takashi Natsume. The teenaged boy can see the spirits and demons called “yokai.” This ability, however, has been a curse that has set Takashi, who is an orphan, apart from others. He finds a stable home with the Fujiwaras, a kind couple who are distant relatives. He also has a companion in Nyanko Sensei, a guardian yokai. Takashi learns that he has inherited two things from his mysterious grandmother, Reiko Natsume: the Sight and her “Book of Friends,” a tome in which Reiko wrote the names of yokai.

As Natsume’s Book of Friends, Vol. 12 begins, Takashi meets a kindhearted yokai who has in his possession a letter ruined by age and exposure to the elements. This yokai knows of another yokai with the ability to restore paper, but this mysterious yokai’s name is in the Book of Friends. Will this unknown yokai be willing to help the grandson of Reiko Natsume? Next, a female yokai wants to return a mirror given to her by a human woman, so will Takashi help her find the mirror’s owner?

Later, Takashi finds himself in a trap sprung by a yokai looking for a gift. Why does a yokai need a gift? The legendary yokai, Lord Omibashira, has returned, and there is a par-tay! in his honor, and Takashi is a welcome-home present. Now, the teen loner must turn to his human acquaintances for help. Can Shuichi Natori, the actor and yokai exorcist, and Kaname Tanuma, a fellow high school student who can sense when yokai are present, help Takashi?

Initially, I didn’t know what to make of the Natsume’s Book of Friends manga. It is one of the few manga that would seem to fit in at Vertigo, the DC Comics’ imprint which focuses on adult oriented fantasy and crime comics. In fact, Natsume’s Book of Friends reminds me of the classic Vertigo series, The Sandman.

Although this is a fantasy series full of mythological creatures, creator Yuki Midorikawa focuses on the characters. The story of the yokai with the weather-beaten note is a tragic story of unrequited love that Midorikawa plays in such a way that you might think the characters are human. The yokai-with-a-mirror story is about keeping promises and about sacrifice that transcends genres. I previously described this series as a celebration of life, but it also celebrates the bonds that hold people to one another.

A

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I read Kamisama Kiss, Vol. 8


I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which as FREE smart phone apps and comics).

Nura Rise of the Yokai Clan: The Nura Clan Assembly

I read Nura: Rise of the Yokai Clan, Vol. 3

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin (which has FREE smart phone apps).

Making a New (Book of) Friends

I finished reading Natsume's Book of Friends, Vol. 1

I posted a review at the Comic Book Bin. This is book is due in bookstores early next year. If you like yokai and the spirits of Japanese folklore, you may like this.