Action Lab Entertainment 2017
Written & Lettered by Justin Phillips
Illustrated by Sean Gregory Miller
Coloured by Lesley Atlansky
Recess is a time for fun, to clear ones mind of the drudgery of the classroom. But for the students of Baker Elementary room 221, it is a solemn occasion. The playground equipment has all gone missing. Worse yet, when Sherlock and Watson run into trouble with a group of ‘big kids,’ Sherlock is forced to face his worst nightmare, his older brother.
So you know a bunch of folks who watch Cumberbatch and Freeman on BBC America or PBS as the case may be. You’d like to introduce them to comics so you have more in common yes? Well here ya go this is the perfect segway to get someone into comics. This may be an all-ages affair but trust me when I say that it’s far from boring or child like. While the youngest among us may find it funny and right up their alley the adult portion of the population, okay teenager and up, will giggle uncontrollably at the antics that Justin puts these two in!
I think we overlook or underestimate those who write all-ages books. The writing is much more intelligent and harder than we think it is. It’s not just a cutesy little tale to entertain mindlessly nope there is a lot more going on than you think. Aside from the grownup angle of the characters in the Sherlock mythology playing out like they do there is coming up with the cases here. The fleshing out the characterisation so that they not only match but are kid friendly and don’t alienate. Coming up with situations that make you laugh, wonder and still try to figure out how Sherlock’s going to get a confession and solve the case.
Then there’s Sean Gregory and Lesley. They have to bring this to life for us. It has the cute factor that it needs to have and certainly has a cartoon feel that makes it interesting. I like Sean Gregory’s eye for storytelling as he uses the layouts on the pages with their angles and perspective extremely well. It’s an all-ages book so backgrounds aren’t as expected but what we do see is greatly appreciate and that he’s not afraid to use them to showcase other points of the story through that is a great thing.
I cannot tell you to go out and make sure you get this, that’d be rude, but I can encourage you to seek this out. If you are a fan of Sherlock Holmes in any way shape or form you owe it to yourself to get this. Also get it, read it, enjoy it and pass it along to someone who isn’t as comic savvy as you are and show them there’s more to comics than simply spandex and capes. Or even better yet take em to the local children’s hospital and donate them to a children’s ward and let them have some moments of shining happiness.
For me this is beyond a doubt some of the best writing around from conception through execution this hits it on every single level imaginable. Not only that the smile never once left my face throughout my time reading this and how often can you say that?
Hands down an award winning series that will entertain you regardless of what age you are!