Filed under: Exquisite Reviews | Tags: Alasdair Stuart, CorneliUS Field, Elizabeth Harvest-Scott, Jack Redpath, Jim Campbell, Luke Foster, Matt Gibbs, Mulp, Professor Harvest-Scott, Sara Dunkerton, Victoria Jones
Hello everyone:) There is a huge, ridiculously vibrant and healthy indie scene in the UK at the moment and, as we come up on Thought Bubble (Got your ticket yet?) it’s getting ready to shine. So, between now and then you’ll see the usual array of reviews but with some added indie goodness. Do check these books out, they’re amazingly good.
Starting with…
Created by Matt Gibbs and Sara Dunkerton
Lettered by Jim Campbell
Edited by Luke Foster
Trouble has a means of finding Jack Redpath. Ex-army, and with the scars to prove it, Jack’s nose for trouble and aptitude for danger have got him into a lot of bad situations. Cornelius Field, his best friend, has got him into all the others. It’s not that Cornelius is a trouble magnet as such…it’s just that sometimes things happen around him. Like the kidnapping of Professor Harvest-Scott’s research assistant in Egypt, the attack on his car and the global race for an artefact of incredible power. One that Jack, Cornelius, reporter Victoria Jones and Professor Harvest-Scott must win if they hope to survive…
Oh and they’re mice.
There’s a good chance you won’t read a more beautiful book this year. Sara Dunkerton’s work is astonishing, similar to Jennifer L Myers’ in its ability to combine animals with human emotions. She’s got an incredible eye for detail and the period setting for the book really gives her a chance to show that off. Professor Harvest-Scott’s moustache is vintage pulp, as are Jack’s ragged ears and time and again she works grace notes like that into the art. It’s a fast paced book, certainly, but it’s one that never sacrifices character for action and feels far more satisfying than many as a result. The colour work, especially in the sequences looking at ancient creation myths which is also where Campbell’s work, particularly impresses really shines. It’s a truly beautiful book, and some of the most consistently excellent art I’ve ever seen.
Matt Gibbs’ script plays on that constantly and there’s a left hand splash page reveal here that will knock you sideways. Time and again he and Dunkerton fold clever references or nods into the art and script alike whilst never losing sight of the driving pace and urgency. It’s an extremely clever, well rounded story they’ve built here, one that isn’t beholden to its influences but also isn’t embarrassed by them. This is pulp, or perhaps mulp, storytelling at its absolute best.
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