Dynamite Entertainment 2017
Written by Will Pfeiffer
Illustrated by Rodney Buchemi
Coloured by Weslei Manuel
Lettered by Troy Peteri
Hidden beneath the Metropolitan Public Library, The Librarians dedicate their lives to protecting an unknowing world from the secret, magical reality hidden all around them. For the past 10 years, Flynn Carsen has served as that protector; The Librarian and now, to aid him in his duties, the Library has recruited four people from around the world, including Eve Baird, a highly skilled counter-terrorism agent who is responsible for protecting the group and keeping them all alive; Jake Stone, an Oklahoma oil worker with an IQ of 190 and an encyclopedic knowledge of art history; Cassandra Cillian, a quirky young woman with the special gift of auditory and sensory hallucinations linked to memory retrieval, known as synesthesia; and Ezekiel Jones, a master of new technologies and aficionado of old classic crimes who enjoys playing the role of international man of mystery. Overseeing the new team of Librarians is the somewhat cantankerous Jenkins, an expert in ancient lore who has been working out of the Library’s branch office for longer than anyone knows. This new group works together to solve impossible mysteries, fight supernatural threats and recover powerful artifacts from around the world.
It’s high time someone got the rights to make these stories the franchise is one of those that has unlimited potential when it comes to the possible storylines that are available to it. The television series is one that I thoroughly enjoy time and again and the eclectic cast of characters only serves to really hammer home how much the differ and how much they need each other. Also they couldn’t have gotten someone better than Will to do this, his experience in team books allows him to handle these individual characters easily enough.
The whole set-up here is utterly fantastic. With Eve and Cassandra tagging along with Flynn to a movie festival thing where a huge impact on Flynn’s life, leading him to be The Librarian, where a whole new adventure begins. it’s exactly like you’d expect an episode of the television show to be. Will’s got the pacing down to a science and his characterisation is absolutely incredible. With all this being so on point it’s really no wonder why I believe that Dynamite found the absolutely right person to helm this series, oh and I hope it’s an ongoing series too.
The interior artwork by Rodney and finished by Weslei is brilliant in it’s own right. I love how close to the actors Rodney gets while still leaving some wiggle room when it comes to his ability with expression. His eye for storytelling is amazing as the angles and perspective he brings to the layouts on the pages are brought to life. Also there’s a slight cinematic feel to this. While it would be better if all the panels had backgrounds to really complete the effect after all when they appear you can see the difference it makes on the story.
I’m pretty darn impressed with how well Will is able to utilise each character and their unique skill set throughout the story. Heck even Jenkins and his demeanour and how he comes across here is perfectly done. So far we’re seeing that there’s a mystery that is right up their alley and the person it centres around is as enigmatic and theatrical as he is makes getting beginning with this a whole lot harder. It is going to take a whole lot of effort, smarts and their particular skills to not only get things started but to survive the experience as well if the ending is any indication.
I am thrilled beyond belief for this and that Dynamite seems to be the home for some spectacular franchises where this fits right in should come as no surprise. This is off to an excellent start and I don’t the quality dropping with this creative team.