Oni Press 2019
Written by Magdalena Visaggio
Illustrated by Claudia Aguirre
Lettered by Zakk Saam
The year is 1983. A series of disappearances afflicts Tucker, Ohio following the opening of a mysterious new factory. But when the town finds itself under siege from strange monsters, it’s up to intrepid girl gang of no-account teen girl delinquents to try and figure out what’s happening—and save everyone's lives before it's too late.
Well I applaud Magdalena for her choice in using a girl group composed of juvenile delinquents after all if you are going to save the world then with the skills the girls already have, they get a jump-start on things. Already we’re put in the mind-set that these ladies can get into and out of places that others cannot, and with already having issues with Authority well that’s just the added bonus. So this is the beginning of what is setting this group apart from the myriad we’ve seen hit stands lately, over the last few years.
With the first page what it is, demonstrates the potential threat that is there, I was going to say looming but well it’s already started. While that is intriguing and it does get you to turn the page it’s meeting the girls and their abbreviated bios that really seal the deal. I mean Ellen is like that girl who thinks she’s the in-crowd type but well she’s can’t help being the bad girl. Tells tall tales and exaggerations because she’s insecure. The lesbian couple where one looks more androgynous and the innocent cutie whose naivete is rather refreshing and believable. It is this introduction that captures the readers’ attention and what makes them want to read further.
So as we get to know the girls and who they are and we really get to see how Nancy’s life impacts who she is and how she behaves. One of the aspects of this that I found interesting is that as we meander our way through the issue our expectations and initial assumptions get warped, twisted and Magdalena shows that she can mix things up with the best of them. I really enjoyed what I thought was a hierarchy in the group not exist as I was thinking it would. Watching things evolve and almost changing on the proverbial dime was rather impressive.
The work Claudia does on the interiors is exciting to see. I really appreciate the attention to detail she does in making each of these girls unique, from their body types to their ethnicities. Also the eyes here, which we all know are the windows to the soul, are so effing wonderful! Ashley in particular has those eyes that show her innocence and naivete so beautifully and I fell in love with these characters just by looking at them. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show us her stunning eye for storytelling. I like the colour work here as well as we see this nice use of shading and gradation. We all know that I am the backgrounds advocate and how we see them here is well done indeed though that school from the outside just looks like an abandoned asylum not a school which seems fitting actually.
As for debuts this one was pretty darn good in setting the story up, introducing the characters and finding ways to get the reader involved. There is an undeniable charm surrounding this story and this book and I really found myself enjoying the time I am spending with them. Oni Press has that eye for those stories that are quality work, in writing and in interior artwork and this fits the bill nicely.