Self-Published 2019
Written by Frankee White
Illustrated by Kat Baumann
Lettered by DC Hopkins
It was desire at first sight, Billie saw Chel across the battlefield pummeling in Keelan's face. Chel's smile made Billie's heart skip a beat. It was right then and there that she knew she had to have her. For a bit things were good, but unfortunately it's hard to navigate a budding relationship and two crews who are constantly butting heads. Something had to give. Now, with their crews about to meet up for another battle, Chel & Billie need to decide once and for all...to make love or war?
If you have ever wondered why I do so much to showcase the little guy then you've not been reading these books. This is where the stars of tomorrow are found and Frankee's writing is a prime example of someone on the rise or someone who SHOULD be on the rise. When I go to cons I walk up and down artist alley and the small press area looking for books such as this. One of the perks what I do is that sometimes they come to me, as did issue one and now two and I couldn't be any happier to see the direction this book is take and where it all seems to be going. This is just the kind of off-beat, off the wall and outside the box thinking that we need to see more of on stands.
The way that this is being told is extremely well done. The story and plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented beautifully. The issue really is one continuous moment in time and how we see this unfold with it's drama and set of rules it just has this absolutely fantastic way of showing it's tone and mood through how we imagine them talking. Which leads me into the characterisation that we see which is so well rendered. We see them as people, well rounded and full of life, hate to but that's a part of life as well. The pacing is great and how we see this take us through the pages revealing the twists and turns along the way, as well as how the action unfolds is so nice to see. How it all works together to create the books ebb & flow and highlight how the books structure shows me a talented writer.
The idea behind this book is just outside the box thinking weird and I wasn't sure I was going to dig it but once you start reading it you realise that it's exactly the kind of book you want to be reading.
The interiors here are pretty darn nice as well. I love the chutzpah when folks do comics in black & white because there is nowhere to hide mistakes if there are any. It is a beautiful thing to see when the linework shows strength and delicacy in the same or coinciding moments that make this what is so special about it. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a marvellous eye for storytelling. The way that backgrounds are utilised here and how they work within the composition of the panels show this fantastic depth perception, scale and that overall sense of size and scope to the book.
What I enjoy the most about this is the fact that it takes us by surprise and then to places we never thought of going ourselves. First rule of Fight Club right but this, this is so far removed from what we think and what we know. This is precisely what good, strong and intelligent storytelling is supposed to do, take us on a journey to some place close and yet seemingly unreachable. A place where the imagination is cut loose and the reader becomes engaged in a way where there are no heroes and no villains just people doing the best they know how to get by.