Wicked Things #1
Boom! Box 2020
Created & Written by John Allison
Illustrated by Max Sarin
Coloured by Whitney Cogar
Lettered by Jim Campbell
Nineteen year old Charlotte Grote has her whole life ahead of her; headed straight to Oxford and a future as a real detective -- until she's framed for murder! Given the choice between going to jail basically forever or joining the police, Lottie decides to hit the beat, all while trying to find the real murderer. Lottie may have been running rings about the police since her 9th birthday, but she's never been on this side of the security tape. Could the future of law enforcement be 5'2" with an extremely strong bangs game? Yes. Very yes.
I think I am in love with this. I love a good mystery story, some of the first books I ever bought for myself were the Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators series of books. So this is one I would naturally gravitate towards and I have to say this didn't disappoint in the least. The writing is fun, witty and full of that self-made teenage drama that we are pretty much instantly taken with what we see. It literally is something at we've either done ourselves or have been put through and it really is charming beyond words. If you like Goldie Vance you are going to love this.
I am such a fan of the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfolds and how the reader learns information is presented beautifully. I like how we are led through the story and the way that things happen which we see but don't see why or what is to become of that action. This of course leads into the characterisation which is utterly phenomenal. I love how Charlotte sees herself and how she projects this to others, her mother is damn well perfectly portrayed and her best friend is super cute. Also how we see the characters act and react to the situations and circumstances is beautifully told. The pacing here is great and as it takes us through the pages it helps to create a sensational ebb & flow.
This took me by surprise in a few ways because while I had expected something I hadn't quite been able to anticipate what we got. That John is able to present what we think but deliver what we don't see coming is mindbogglingly good. I really hadn't been ready for the level and quality of writing here and I cannot say enough about that.
The interiors Max brings is just as cute, charming and enthralling as the story itself. I adore that we see backgrounds as much as we do as with a lot all-ages style artwork we don't see them. Not only do we see them here but the linework that we see shows such a strong and steady hand as it navigates the varying weights beautifully. The way we see faces, facial expressions and body language throughout the books just beautiful as it enhances and furthers the characterisation in ways that words alone simply cannot do. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a marvellous eye for storytelling. The colour work is fabulous and I really like the colour combination choices as well as how the hues and tones within the colours create the shading, highlights and shadow work.
From the concept through the execution there isn't anything about this that doesn't work on every level. It has this charm, grace and enthusiasm that gets transferred from the pages to the reader in way that you barely notice until the story is over. This, this is something during this self-imposed exile stage should be on your reading list!
Boom! Box 2020
Created & Written by John Allison
Illustrated by Max Sarin
Coloured by Whitney Cogar
Lettered by Jim Campbell
Nineteen year old Charlotte Grote has her whole life ahead of her; headed straight to Oxford and a future as a real detective -- until she's framed for murder! Given the choice between going to jail basically forever or joining the police, Lottie decides to hit the beat, all while trying to find the real murderer. Lottie may have been running rings about the police since her 9th birthday, but she's never been on this side of the security tape. Could the future of law enforcement be 5'2" with an extremely strong bangs game? Yes. Very yes.
I think I am in love with this. I love a good mystery story, some of the first books I ever bought for myself were the Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators series of books. So this is one I would naturally gravitate towards and I have to say this didn't disappoint in the least. The writing is fun, witty and full of that self-made teenage drama that we are pretty much instantly taken with what we see. It literally is something at we've either done ourselves or have been put through and it really is charming beyond words. If you like Goldie Vance you are going to love this.
I am such a fan of the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfolds and how the reader learns information is presented beautifully. I like how we are led through the story and the way that things happen which we see but don't see why or what is to become of that action. This of course leads into the characterisation which is utterly phenomenal. I love how Charlotte sees herself and how she projects this to others, her mother is damn well perfectly portrayed and her best friend is super cute. Also how we see the characters act and react to the situations and circumstances is beautifully told. The pacing here is great and as it takes us through the pages it helps to create a sensational ebb & flow.
This took me by surprise in a few ways because while I had expected something I hadn't quite been able to anticipate what we got. That John is able to present what we think but deliver what we don't see coming is mindbogglingly good. I really hadn't been ready for the level and quality of writing here and I cannot say enough about that.
The interiors Max brings is just as cute, charming and enthralling as the story itself. I adore that we see backgrounds as much as we do as with a lot all-ages style artwork we don't see them. Not only do we see them here but the linework that we see shows such a strong and steady hand as it navigates the varying weights beautifully. The way we see faces, facial expressions and body language throughout the books just beautiful as it enhances and furthers the characterisation in ways that words alone simply cannot do. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a marvellous eye for storytelling. The colour work is fabulous and I really like the colour combination choices as well as how the hues and tones within the colours create the shading, highlights and shadow work.
From the concept through the execution there isn't anything about this that doesn't work on every level. It has this charm, grace and enthusiasm that gets transferred from the pages to the reader in way that you barely notice until the story is over. This, this is something during this self-imposed exile stage should be on your reading list!
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