The idea of a fantasy school that teaches young, impressionable minds the art of magic is nothing new. In fact, ever since J.K Rowling created one of the most successful book franchises in human history, the idea of a magical school has become a staple trope of popular fiction with hundreds of authors trying to capture the same magic.
“Blackwood: The Mourning After” #1 continues that grand tradition, but asks the reader to wonder what a magical school would look like if it was firmly set in the real world instead of its own separate reality.
Written by Evan DorkinCover by: Veronica Fish
Illustrated and colored by Veronica and Andy Fish
Lettered by Greg Mckenna
The next chapter of the hit occult fantasy series Blackwood, from Eisner Award-winning Evan Dorkin (Beasts of Burden) and the powerhouse art team of Veronica and Andy Fish. Blackwood College is in mourning after the death of Dean Ogden, unaware there’s a traitor in their midst looking to bury the entire school. Meanwhile, the students continue to deal with Dennis’s death, a situation that Reiko not only refuses to accept but plans to rectify. Will mayhem ensue? Duh.
“Blackwood: The Mourning After” #1 brings readers back to the world of Blackwood College, an American college where young minds are molded and shaped to learn the occult arts, which seem to be treated like any normal profession in this world. Something’s gone terribly wrong at Blackwood College, which has caused the three hundred year old Dean to suddenly pass away, leaving the faculty and students behind to figure out what to do next.
Naturally, it turns out that the Dean was up to something shady that involved forbidden knowledge and a book about necromancy, which is almost never a good thing in any fantasy setting.
Ironically, the thing that makes “Blackwood: The Mourning After” #1 so unique is how mundane writer Evan Dorkin makes his magical school. Dorkin is a writer who has a reputation for seeing characters and ideas a bit differently, and that particular talent is on full display here. Sure, Blackwood is a place filled with magical books, eccentric staff, and deadly secrets that can doom people to a grisly death, but it’s also a school filled with kids who probably never grew up in a magical environment and probably led perfectly normal lives before they came to Blackwood College. This means that the students and faculty act like familiar, perfectly normal college students and professors. The students like to party and believe they know everything while some members of the faculty are more concerned with their own reputations and research than teaching. It’s a setting that should be familiar to anyone who has attended college, especially in the United States.
If “Blackwood: The Mourning After” #1 has any problems with the writing, it’s that it assumes that the readers is probably already familiar with the world of Blackwood College and any new readers don’t need a lot of time to process what is going on. The book tries to cram a lot of information into twenty-two pages and while the death of the college Dean is the focus of the book, it is also revealed that a student has died, that the two deaths are related, and that several other students are in danger. The book tries to cram a lot of exposition into its pages on top building a large roster of believable and engaging characters, which means it is very easy for the reader to miss important information and forces them to back track and ruin their immersion.
It’s kind of a shame that the writing forces the book to be so crowded, because the artwork deserves to breathe and shine on its own. The pencils, inks, and colors for “Blackwood: The Mourning After” #1 come courtesy of husband and wife team Veronica and Andy Fish, and they are a fantastic choice for this kind of story. Veronica and Andy have a keen grasp of visual story-telling and each panel goes a long way towards enhancing Dorkin’s writing. The campus and offices look cluttered and in the early stages of a transition of power, each character is dressed in clothing that fits their personalities and there is a palpable sense of grief and dread in everyone’s faces.
Continued belowOn top of the great pencils, the artwork is complimented by a hyper saturated color palate that does a great job of enhancing the art work and plays a huge part in enhancing the magic parts of the magical realist setting. The whole book has a psychedelic feel to it that feels dream-like and mysterious, like the reader took some sort of illicit substance before picking up the book and had it kick in right as they turned to the first page. It is a gorgeous comic to look at and does a fantastic job of enhancing and telling the story.
While “Blackwood: The Mourning After” #1 is a good book with a core of veteran creators who have won several awards, it is a book that is trying to do something new and different with a popular book in a very familiar and popular story genre. As a result, it feels like the creative team doesn’t fully trust in the story, the characters, and their own abilities to sell the story; so they tried to compensate by cramming in as much intrigue, world building, and character development as they could. It’s not the best first impression in the world, but it does set up an intriguing setting and story which should settle down in later issues.
Final Verdict: 7.7- Blackwood College is a nice spin on the magical school story with some gorgeous artwork, but cramming in too much information so quickly prevents it from being the best book it could be.
