Every so often, I pick up a book at complete random. Usually it’s due to some kind of word of mouth, or perhaps a really intriguing cover. With the case of the Stuff of Legend, my reasoning would be a combination of both. Fortunately for me, it also happens that the Stuff of Legend is a comic that after reading left me so incredibly amped that I am quite literally begging for more. This, ladies and gents, is because the Stuff of Legend is quite possibly one of the most creative and imaginative indie on-going comic I’ve read in quite the recent while, with such an intriguing plot and fantastic artwork that I – along with anyone who reads it, I might add – can’t help but get incredibly excited over it.
Follow me after the cut as I explain why you need to go out, find this comic, and buy it right now – because even those that don’t really read a lot of small press comics or graphic novels need to read some good non-superhero related comics every once in a while, right? Right.
Set in the 1940’s, the Stuff Of Legend Volume 1: The Dark opens with a young boy in bed. A mysterious and dark force arrives and pulls him into the closet, much to the dismay of both his pet dog and his toys. Banding together to save them, his dog and a series of his toys band together to travel into the Dark and defeat the Boogey Man, who has taken their master. As it happens, crossing from our world to the world of the Dark actually brings all these toys to life, so the teddy bear Max becomes an actual bear, the toy soldier the Colonel becomes an actual soldier, etc. And so the tremendous fight against the Boogey Man begins, as the toys fight horde after horde of the Boogey Man’s soldiers – from the beaches of a toy version of Normandy to the deceitfully charming town of Hopscotch.
It is not often that a book comes along with such a sheer and unadulterated form of creativity. Almost as if it were a dark and twisted version of Toy Story, the Stuff of Legend takes the idea of toys coming to life to a whole new level. As the troupe crosses into the Dark and becomes real, we’re met with a brand new set of characters. While we only meet our heroes briefly before the cross, you can notice the character change right away as each character comes into their own and begin to meet the challenges of becoming “real.” This becomes a plot point right away in the book’s two issues, and plays a part in the events that unfold. Of course, the book is also very uncompromising from the beginning, and while you still read and get the 
feeling that the “good guys will win,” you never get the chance to imagine that our heroes will always be safe, which brings a real set of urgency to the tale and makes the villain all the more horrifying of a monster as he manipulates our characters.
Not since reading a book like Bone have I found myself engrossed with such childlike wonder and amazement, falling in love with every character from the second they appear on the page.
It is with great pleasure that I get to tell you about this story, crafted with loving care by Mike Raicht and Brian Smith. The two together have created a world that is so believable and addictive, much in the way that stories like the Neverending Story and Alice in Wonderland captured our imaginations as children. The Stuff Of Legend is absolutely perfect for both the younger reader and the mature one, looking to recapture that sense of wonder and amazement. The world of toys and their adventures has never been more relevant, and set to the backdrop of flashbacks in and around the second World War, the story becomes that much more real. With just two issues in, I already find myself attached to and feeling strongly for the outcome of the characters, all due to the excellent characters portrayed by Raicht and Smith. Their understanding of their world only serves to better us as the reader of the story, as it is perfectly formed within it’s own universe.
Continued below
Then we come to the art by Charles Paul Wilson III. Featured in a sepia tone, the book looks absolutely fantastic, emphasizing his pencils perfectly. It reads as if you’re looking at old photographs, all of memories captured on film for our entertainment. You will believe that your toy Jack in the Box can turn into one of the most fearsome warriors, especially with the design created by Wilson III. Wilson III’s art perfectly characterizes this tale, and to say that he gets the vision of the book is to put it lightly. I point you no further than the opening battle, as we are placed on a Normandy-esque set where the steel blockades are made of jax and the houses are made of Lincoln Logs. It is even worth repeating the elements of Hopscotch, a town build on a beautifully set and even board game, with every character inside representing someone you might find inside the box of any Mattel board game. I can only imagine what artistic surprises he has in store as the toys continue to explore the land of the Dark, a place where anything you’ve ever owned can come to life.
I can’t honestly recommend this book enough. If you love fantastical tales, especially those of CS Lewis and Lewis Carrol, you need the Stuff of Legend in your collection. If you ever loved a toy so much that you’d die for it and hope that it would for you too, you’ll need the Stuff of Legend in your collection. If none of those apply to you but you are a fan of fantastic graphic fiction, then you need the Stuff of Legend in your collection. With only two issues in and one trade out already (which reprints the FCBD story as well as a brand new story), you’re going to want to get off your computer and find this book now.
Read the first FCBD issue, which acts as the prologue, right here, and prepare to find yourself sucked into an absolute dream of a comic.
