Zenescope Entertainment 10th Anniversary Special 2015
Written by Donald Joh
Illustrated by Gregbo Watson
Coloured by Erick Arciniega
Journey back to beginning!
Alice Liddle befriends a boy during her imprisonment in Wonderland, but will the madness of the mysterious realm destroy them both or will their strong bond keep them from losing their sanity?
Enter a world unlike any you’ve seen before as Alice’s adventures in Wonderland turn into her worst nightmares.
Okay wow this is what Zenescope needs to keep doing going back to telling some of the most interesting and frightening horror stories they can. This one takes the madness of Wonderland and a young Alice and weaves her story into one that has happened in the real world creating one possible explanation for the actions of what we consider a madman. It’s beautifully done, how the madness of Wonderland can infect someone already predisposed to cruelty and irrevocably change their life.
We open seeing a boy being abused at the hands of his father scared of the men who visit his room in the dark through the closet. Turns out it’s Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum who found a way to visit Earth through the boys room. Seeing him as nothing more than dinner they are prepared to cook him when Alice steps in and saves him. The two run off and it’s the beginning of their story, friendship and for one obsession.
The interior artwork here is absolutely phenomenal! Facial expressions and structure are so well done, expressive and full of emotions. The mood, setting, tone of the book reflects the story wonderfully from the madness of Wonderland to the craziness that is “our” world with their subtle differences come across surprisingly well. Watching the boy grow up living his life spending time in the world of men and then visiting Alice as he grows old and she remains the same age it’s disconcerting to say the least and well it’s also terribly fascinating. His mannerisms and just the overall look of him as we see the years pass is some the result of some serious talent.
The Caterpillar's role in all this needs to be seen to be believed and boy does what he do, do a number on the boy. Up to and including the day he returns to find Alice has left Wonderland. When J.W. finds alice again in the real world she’s grown up, well at least a high school student, but doesn’t remember her time in Wonderland. The writing here is beyond anything we’ve seen in the Wonderland stories before and it’s something hopefully we’ll continue to see. What happens here with Alice and her friend is something that will have ramifications for her when we see her as an adult. Also the reveal of whom her was well that’s one for the record books.
Powerfully written, illustrated and executed this is the way Zenescope can regain it’s horror status in the industry.