Coffee, cat foam lattes, and centaurs open up Image’s newest all-ages fantasy com- Wait, wait, wait. Did I type that right? An all-ages comic from Image? And it’s by one of the “Lumberjanes” co-creators?! Well, this is certainly a surprise.
< b> Written by Grace Ellis
Illustrated by Shae Beagle & Kate Leth
Colored by Shae Beagle & Kate Leth
Lettered by Clayton CowlesA NEW ONGOING SERIES from Lumberjanes creator GRACE ELLIS and talented newcomer SHAE BEAGLE that tells a story of monsters, romance, and magical hijinks! The first arc also includes an additional short story with artist KATE LETH! Fantasy creatures are living typical, unremarkable lives alongside humans, and barista Julie strives to be the most unremarkable of all. Normal job, normal almost-girlfriend, normal…werewolf transformations that happen when she gets upset? Yikes! But all bets are off when she and her centaur best friend Chet find themselves in the middle of a magical conspiracy. Will Julie and Chet be able to save their friends? Is Julie’s dogged determination to be normal a lost cause? Who’s going to watch the coffee shop while our heroes are out saving the world??
When I first heard about “Moonstruck”, I really didn’t know what to expect. It’s a concept that, all things considered, seems to be more in line with the lineup at BOOM! Studios than anything at Image – which makes this decision all the more exciting. It means that, at least from my admittedly limited experience, Image comics is starting to break from the mold that they have set themselves in for the last few years. Not to discount any of the comics that they’ve published – they’ve been constantly knocking it out of the park – but they tended to stick to material that is rated T for teen at the minimum.
“Moonstruck’s” entire aesthetic, too, runs counter to the Image, well, image. All of Shae Beagle’s characters have a cute, soft design to them, with very rounded faces, simple dot eyes for most distance and mid-range shots, and slowly curving noses. Even the one menacing character, Lindi, who sports the most angular design, only really has a pointed nose. In fact, the only time we see the rounding on the characters’ faces really sharpen up is during times of anger. I could continue to compare this title to other Image trends but, really, that would only be doing a disservice to this comic. So, let me back up a little and get to why you actually read these reviews – to find out whether or not you should pick up this title.
There’s a surprisingly large amount of stuff that I want to discuss about this title but I’ll start with Shae’s artwork and coloring. As I talked about in the preceding paragraph, her character designs are very simple in the facial department (for the most part) and because of this, she’s able to really push her expressions to their extremes. This is both a blessing and a curse. It means that even in the smallest of panels, she can make each expression unique and dynamic, allowing us to gleam a lot more out of the small changes in an expression. It also means that sometimes a character starts to fall into an exaggerated caricature that makes them feel less real – or as real as Medusas and Werewolves can be.
This certainly happens with Lindy and Chet, whose expressions have the most range. Their faces change so many times throughout the issue into these highly exaggerated, comic versions of themselves that we don’t get the smaller, subtler changes, which makes them feel a lot more one-dimensional than they are probably supposed to be. However, I do believe that this is something that subsequent issues are going to fix, just by virtue of us being exposed to these characters more. This is still a first issue after all.
Still, for a first issue, and from (who I believe) is a brand new comic illustrator, the command she has of the panels and coloring is phenomenal (especially for Lindi). Warm yellows and browns bathe the café that opens up “Moonstruck”, setting a relaxing and comforting mood that, for a while at least, seems to be the tone of the comic. But then it gives way into some pinks and purples, harsh reds, and soon into dark greys and greens; each color palate change reflecting the emotions of the characters, especially Julie. Additionally, other a couple panels, all the colors are fairly muted, making the comic feel grounded in reality. Yet every color still feels vibrant (as opposed to some other muted comic properties *cough* BVS *cough*).
Continued belowThere is one page where all this really comes together and it’s the first time we really see Julie’s wolfish nature. Its only six panels but there is a palpable tension between Lindi and Julie. Both characters are kept on opposite sides of the page, with Lindi in panels 1, 3, and 5. Lindi begins by looking over her shoulder and down at panel two, where Julie is looking up at her with big, sad eyes. Lindi, on the next line, Lindi has turned and, continuing to insult Julie, smugly eyes her, still looking down. Julie on the other hand is looking down, eyes closed, like she is fighting back something, be it tears or rage. By the last line, Lindi is bearing her fangs at Julie, taunting her, still looking down, but this time, Julie is staring back at her, snarling, with rage in her eyes, as if she were now at eye level with Lindi, daring her to continue.
The camera zooms in on the faces on each subsequent line, increasing the details on their faces. Julie’s face slowly gets darker and darker and the yellows and browns get more and more golden. The background has dropped out and instead is replaced by a slowly darkening golden brown, placing a deep shadow over the characters. Julie begins to fight back, as evidenced by Lindi starting with a panel ¾ the width of the page but by the last line, Julie has pushed back, taking up just as much of the width as Lindi. It feels like the first true confrontation of the issue is about to happen, even though on the next page it all fizzles out, although that is probably for the best.
With these six panels, we learn so much about the dynamic between the two characters and much more about Julie. Her first instinct is to diffuse a situation by apologizing but won’t break under pressure, instead opting to fight back. However, as evidenced by the next page, this is something that she really doesn’t want to do. It means that she had lost control of her emotions, which brings her personal shame.
Even though we don’t really know these characters too well yet, it’s scenes like these that make me excited for the rest of this series. Unfortunately, I still have some reservations, mostly in the story department.
To put it bluntly, it’s hard to tell where this series is going from here. Is it focusing on Julie trying to live her life? If so, why do we have to have a very vague, (very Lumberjanes-esque) prophecy near the end of the issue? I really wanted the focus of this series to be on the first thing that we’re introduced to in this comic, Julie’s new almost-girlfriend because the fantasy tropes at play here (hero gets prophecy, doesn’t want to go on adventure, etc.) don’t feel strong enough to carry the comic. The fantasy setting works, heh, fantastically and I just didn’t feel enough weight from the introduction of the prophecy. Maybe it was because the prophecy itself didn’t feel specific enough to Julie or because it was done in a two-page spread, instead of a tension building series of panels.
For a good example of selling the impact of an adventure, take “Bone” by Jeff Smith. This is another all-ages fantasy comic with a simple art style, just like here. However, by the end of the issue one, we’re given a bunch of intriguing mysteries and obstacles for Fone Bone, the main character, in the form of a huge, terrifying swarm of locusts and rat creatures that want to eat him. We’re invested in this new world and what it is hiding. It feels like the event meant something, even if we don’t know what it is yet. Here, it just feels like a trigger for the solicit text and for a full transformation for Julie.
It could be, and I hope this is the case, that the prophecy isn’t that important. That, instead of this being the focus, it sinks into the background for a while, slowly building, while the stronger aspects of the story, i.e. the romance and Julie’s life, takes precedent. While I love a good fantasy adventure, I also love good romance comics (especially Shojo manga) and I think this could, if played right, could be both.
So, what’s the verdict then? If you’ve made it this far, all I can say is yes, I certainly believe this is worth your time and attention; even if only to tell Image that their audience is willing to support something that is very different than their usual fair. Additionally, it shows Image, which is arguably the third or fourth largest comic publisher right now, that QPOC characters can lead an all-ages comic for them. The characters are likeable, the art is expressive, and I cannot wait to see how the characters will face each challenge. Hopefully, they grow but only time, and a solid publishing run, will tell.
Final Verdict: 7.9. Romance wafts through the comic like coffee even if it is overshadowed a bit by a burnt smelling prophecy.
