Review: DreamWalker & Abby's Menagerie

DreamWalker: The Winter Tree #1
Abby's Menagerie #1
by Jenni Gregory with Barry Gregory
$1.50 ea. Zero One Comics

I'm not a big fan of online comics; I spend the majority of my day at work in front of a computer, so when I'm relaxing with a good book I'd rather be looking at print. But when I learned from Johanna that there was a new DreamWalker comic available only online, I overcame my resistance and decided to go for it.

DreamWalker is one of those good indy series with a spotty publishing history. It started nearly ten years ago as a self-published effort for five issues, then it moved to Caliber's ill-fated Tapestry imprint for six issues. In the wake of the Caliber implosion, DreamWalker moved over to, of all places, Avatar, where it didn't really fit in with the rest of the publisher's offerings, but Barry Gregory was affiliated with the company. (Nearly all of the back issues of DreamWalker can be ordered online at the DreamWalker Press Website, at a sale price of just 99 cents!)

The premise behind DreamWalker is simple: Karen Brinson, a bookstore clerk, discovers that she has the ability to enter other people's dreams. Her abilities are largely uncontrollable though, and as the series progresses Karen tries to learn how to better control them, while at the same time dealing with what she learns about close friends and total strangers through their dreams.

DreamWalker: The Winter Tree picks up the story where it left off, but it's a relatively slow start. The first several pages find Karen wandering in a wintery dreamscape, unsure as to whose dream she is in. Later at the bookstore, she relates her aborted attempt to meet her previously unknown father. The comic ends with Karen's mentor, Mrs. Tobias, in a dream of her own that turns into a nightmare. It's a good re-introduction to the series, but I found myself wishing that there was more. This is the first time that DreamWalker has appeared in full color, and it is employed to mixed results: the opening dream sequence looks stunning, but the scene at the bookstore looks a bit unreal. The closing scene employs the color quite well though as it subtly shifts as the true nature of Mrs. Tobias's dream reveals itself.

Since BitPass (which is required for purchase at Zero One Comics) has a minimum credit amount of $3, I also purchased and downloaded the first issue of Abby's Menagerie, another online comic from Gregory that, if I recall correctly, originally appeared a couple of years ago in a different venue. In the story, the titular Abby, a successful business woman, finds herself at a mysterious zoo that only has extinct animals. While exploring, Abby finds herself tossed through time where she observes the gradual downfall of one of the animals, the tasmanian tiger. The story gets to be a bit preachy, but there's also a good deal of substance and it serves to set up the basic premise of the series. (I don't know if the story ever continued or not...)

As for the online readng experience, it's better than most online comics offerings. Each issue is a self-contained Flash file, and you page through the comic either by using previous/next links and/or clicking on a page number. Since these comics were originally created to be read on a computer screen, each page is in landscape format, and you can easily read the text without having to zoom in.

I'm happy to get new DreamWalker material, even if it is online only, and I'll definitely purchase new issues as they become available (soon I hope!) Hopefully when "The Winter Tree" is finished it will be collected into a print edition so it can be enjoyed in a more tangible format. (And hey, I would love to see collected editions of the previous DreamWalker volumes as well--I have a feeling that digest-sized collections would do well in the current market.)

Ratings: DreamWalker: 3.5 (of 5); Abby's Menagerie: 3 (of 5)

New This Week: February 23, 2005

Based on the NCRL list for this week's comics shipping from Diamond, here are a few things to look for at the local comic shop tomorrow:

It should come as no surprise to regular readers of this blog that my Pick of the Week is Greant Morrison and J. H. Williams III's Seven Soldiers #0. Forget all that Crisis 2 hype--Seven Soldiers will be the big multi-title event from 2005 that people will be talking about ten or twenty years from now.

In other comics:

A-V & Winn-Mill have the third issue of Following Cerebus. I don't know how much longer they'll be able to keep this interesting, but heck, they've done over 70 issues of Wrapped in Plastic, their Twin Peaks magazine of fandom & criticism, so Following Cerebus ought to be good for at least a few more issues.

Abstract has a new issue of Strangers in Paradise (#71)

Antarctic has an affordable Pocket Manga edition of Ben Dunn's Heaven Sent.

Beckett has the eigth (and final?) issue of the second Ruule series, Kiss & Tell.

Dark Horse has the fourth issue of BPRD: The Dead and, just in time for Christmas, Jingle Belle #3.

DC has the third issue of the new Legion of Super-Heroes, Paul Pope in Solo #3, a new JSA collection (vol. 7: Prince of Darkness), a new Y: The Last Man (#31), Sleeper Season Two #9, and the debut of their next CMX manga title, Gals.

I Books has a collection of Don Simpson's Megaton Man.

IDW has the second issue of Grimjack: Killer Instinct.

Lost in the Dark has the final issue of Video (#5).

Marvel has the final issue of the Black Widow mini (#6), a new issue of Powers (#9), and the rather late final issue of Ultimate Nightmare (#5).

And lastly, Oni is re-releasing the second Courtney Crumrin volume, Courtney Crumrin and the Coven of Mystics; if you haven't read this yet, don't let the opportunity pass you by again!

Review: Geraniums and Bacon

Geraniums and Bacon #1-2
by Catherine Leamy
$2.00 ea. Bella Razor Press

Geraniums and Bacon is a mini comic from Cathy Leamy; issue #1 was published in 2002, and #2 was published in 2004. Each issue contains several unrelated short stories, ranging from one-page gags to pieces that last for several pages.

Issue #1 opens strong, with "Little Kid Dreams," a series of captioned single panels; and "Self-esteem," a talking-head bit. She closes the issue with "Faith Crisis," a several-page long retelling of her struggles with religion. It's the weakest part of the issue; while Leamy's religion issues are something that nearly everyone goes through (typically in one's early twenties), it's a process that is of interest to the person going through it but not really to anyone else, and she is unable to provide any new insights. To her credit, she closes the piece by relating a phone conversation with her mother that takes the piss out of the whole self-indulgent struggling.

Issue #2 is stronger than #1, providing some excellent laughs. Especially strong are the opening "Writer's Embelishment" episode, and the two-page pseudo ad for "Lysol Gay-Away". "The Dream," wherein Cathy transforms into the 'Goddess of Sex and Math,' had me laughing out loud. It's a generally stronger offering than issue #1, showing Leamy's growth as a cartoonist and storyteller.

Art-wise Leamy has an open, cartoony style that shifts around slightly depending on the mood and requirements of the story. There are very few sharp edges, except where required, giving her art a free-form look.

Leamy reminds me of a young Pam Bliss, which is high praise indeed. I expect to see continued growth from her as she refines her style and outlook and look forward to reading more.

In addition to these collections, Leamy also has a continuing mini comic series, Between the Lines, which I hope to read at some point.

Mini comics can be hard to find, but copies of Geraniums and Bacon can be purchsed online via Small Press Swapmeet.

(review copies of these materials were furnished by the creator)

Rating: 3.5 (of 5)

Quick Alt-Comix GN Reviews

Teratoid Heights
by Mat Brinkman
Mostly wordless, these short tales consist of odd creatures moving and existing in surreal landscapes. They are oddly both comforting and disturbng, and in their own inhuman way speak to the human condition through the lens of the cutely grotesque. The cartoons remind me somewhat of the Jim Woodring's Frank, though Brinkman's beings are less identifyable than Woodring's cartoon characters, and thus more of a blank slate upon which we the readers can project our own fears and yearnings. Published by the now-sadly-defunct Highwater Books, Teratoid Heights is a prime example of why that publisher will be missed.
Rating: 4 (of 5)


Hickee
edited by Graham Annable
This anthology contains short humor pieces by the likes of Joe White, Nathan Stapley, Paul Brown, Ramzig Mavlian, Graham Annable, and several others. Unfortunately it misses far more often than it hits. For every fun bit like White's "The Bear" or Annable's "Dirty Trick" there are far too many pieces that rely on sophomoric gags about sex or bodily functions. Actually 'sophomoric' is giving some of the strips a bit too much credit, as deriving humor from someone called 'Ze Fartmaster' aims squarely at ten-year-old boys. It's maybe 25% good stuff, but that's not quite enough to recommend an anthology. But it's probably worth borrowing from a friend or the library.
Rating: 2 (of 5)


Quit Your Job
by James Kochalka
This charming little book finds 'Daddy,' a funny looking guy with elf ears who lives alone with his cat, waking to find a deep snowfall, and skipping work so that he and his cat can frolic in the snow. They find a magic ring and decide to journey to the North Pole, but get distracted at a coffee shop where their robot friend Jason X-12 works. I've never been much of a fan of Kochalka's, but this story mostly works, as there's a sense of joy, innocence and a tinge of saddness in Daddy's character. On the downside, the story meanders at the end rather than coming to a conclusion, and the occasional burst of profanity from the characters is at odds with the rest of the tone of the book. But still, this is one of the better things that I've read from Kochalka, and it's probably worth your attention.
Rating: 3 (of 5)

A Great Cover, but...

That's an excelent Frank Quitely cover to All-Star Superman #1, but shouldn't the cover to a brand-new super-hero title be, oh, I dunno, a little more exciting and action-oriented? It'd make a great cover for a second issue, but a first issue cover needs to grab the reader a bit more, I think.

Monkey Covers

Sunday is Monkey Covers day here at YACB. Because there's nothing better than a comic with a monkey on the cover.

On the cover to 1967's Strange Adventures #201 we have Animal Man vs. The Mod Gorilla Boss, illustrated by Carmine Infantino & George Roussos.

(standard disclaimer about gorillas not really being monkeys applies)

Image is courtesy of the GCD. Click on the image for a larger version.

How on Earth (or Krypton) Did I Miss This?

Starting in March, Cartoon Network is airing a Krypto: The Superdog animated series.

The Superman Homepage has the story, and a gallery of pretty pictures.

In this fantastical universe filled with a kinetic sense of wonder and playfulness, a dog can bury a bone on the moon, and a game of fetch can span the galaxy. It's a colorful cosmic world in which weird techno gadgets fall into the hands of toddlers, where growth formulas accidentally create monster caterpillars, and where selfless hounds patrol the solar system for signs of trouble from villains intent on taking over the planet!

I don't care if it's targeted at kids--those drawings are sweet!

I hope that Beppo make a guest appearance at some point. A dog with the powers of Superman in cool, but a monkey? That Rawks!

(Big thanks to Mike Sterling for the heads-up!)