The latest anthology from Mallard Small Press is a melting pot of mirth, melancholy and madness.
This is a pacy and evocative combination of comic strips, stand alone illustrations and the written word. It's been a long time since I read anything even approaching Mallard 6. Something where I wasn't quite certain what I was going to experiance when I opened the cover and started to read.
Some of the illustrations may look deceptively simple, but are in fact very expressive. And in others such as in She Sang The Vampire Song (Iain Laurie) the illustrations have a hint of Robert Crumb and Mike Allred (Think; mutant street beatniks from Madman and you'll get some idea) in their style, with strong, disturbing, fascinating and detailed imagery.
I liked this anthology very much. For example, The Exhilarating Small Talk of Steve and Jacques (Jo Billingsley) comic strips feature simple match stick men wittily pondering philosphical thoughts. 10,074 (Rob Cursons) explores loneliness, joy and disappointment in just twelve panels!
Paracetamol Man (Simon Eaves,) is a descriptive short story about one man's descent into desperation after their initial illicit joy. The Yearning and the Recoil:6 (Christopher Bernard Leahy) an ongoing serial, is a glimpse into a village hidebound by tradition that gave me the chills. It reminded me of the horror sometimes found in villages featured in Hammer House Of Horror films or series. It had that blending of the ordinary with the macabre. There is something of the Whicker Man about it.
All I can say is this: thank goodness for the independent press, because this was wonderful. Funny, scary, thought provoking and yes, a little bizarre in places, but wonderful all the same. If you want to read something different, something quirky and something satisfying, get your hands on a copy of this. I think that you may like it too.
