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WE SHADOWS, VOL. 1

TOKYOPOP
CARTOONIST: Sonny Strait
ISBN: 978-14278-0104-3; paperback; Comedy/Action; Rated “T” for “Teen-Age 13+”
190 pp., B&W, $9.99

We Shadows is a new OEL manga series from TOKYOPOP.  The last two years have not only seen the quality of this publisher’s OEL (original English language) titles improve in terms of quality, but also seen more established cartoonists create their own “global manga.”  We Shadows is the creation of Don “Sonny” Strait, who has worked on Elfquest with Wendy Pini (who provides Vol. 1's forward).  Strait is also a voice actor for the English dub versions of such anime as “Dragonball Z,” Fullmetal Alchemist,” and “Lupin III,” among others.

We Shadows is set in the world of Faerie amidst palace intrigue and rebellion.  Cosmo and Vogue, knows as the Glamour Gloms (and who are in fact obsessed with glamour), have talked King Oberon out of his crown, the duo has also placed Queen Titania under a sleep spell.  Now, all they need to solidify their rule is to take control of Puck’s pistol (named “Truthbite”), which is buried, like Excalibur, in a large rock.

Meanwhile, a female faerie with the unfortunate name of “Goat,” trains to be a faerie princess with the help of her friend, Mushroom, a magical anthropomorphized mushroom.  Although Cosmo and Vogue have nothing but disdain for her, they and the rest of Faerie are about to find out Goat is destined for greatness and she just may reveal the Glamour Gloms’ secret along the way.

THE LOWDOWN:  We Shadows, Vol. 1 has the problem from which many first volumes suffer – it gets bogged down in setup.  Most of the first half of this book is a confusion of introducing too many characters and the author being too oblique about intrigue and character motivation.  Top that off with a tangle of back story and this book is a disaster in the making, but two things save it.

Once the focus falls on Goat, who is ostensibly the lead character, the narrative coalesces.  There’s something about this spunky, but self-doubting hot girl.  Perhaps, it’s that mysterious something that gets a young woman dubbed the “It girl,” but whatever “it” is, Goat works as a lead character.  The second saving grace of We Shadows is Sonny Strait’s considerable cartooning skills.  Mixing manga-esque influences and an American animation drawing style, Strait has created a visual language that captures the otherness of Faerie and gives this story a real world sensibility and a snarky, sarcastic mood.

POSSIBLE AUDIENCE:  This is aimed at the “Young Adult” audience, but readers who’ve enjoyed something like Elfquest or Sandman might like this action comedy take on faerie tales.

B

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