issue 28 // volume 43

Comic Corner:
Entertaining, but
failed to cast its spell

> ‘Gunnerkrigg Court Vol. 1: Orientation’ review

Brittney MacDonald
Life & Style Editor

 

n order to celebrate the return of

Comic Corner, I decided to explore
a publisher that hasn’t been in the
spotlight all that much. The comic
publishing house BOOM! may not be
a household name, but they do have
quite a few awards under their belt—but
as we all know, professional accolades
are no measure for narrative success,
at least in terms of popular fiction. The
award-winning Gunnerkrigg Court by
Thomas Siddell is worth more than just
a passing glance, despite its troubles.

Written and illustrated by Siddell,

the plot follows Antimony Carver
as she attends the somewhat gothic
boarding school Gunnerkrigg Court.
The plot is a bit like Charmed meets
Nancy Drew, as there are magical and
occult events occurring, and it is the
job of Antimony and her friend Kat to
figure it all out. In this first volume,
the conflicts are fairly basic, as Siddell
concentrates more on world building
and character development—which
will come in handy later, as this is quite
an extensive series. Despite all the
narrative development, Siddell does
still manage to establish overarching
themes and resolve some of the minor

hello.
can you
understand

what do
you want
FROM The 7

you want
to escape?
where are you
trying ta
Gor

conflicts he presents. It’s enough to make
this first volume feel like a complete
work unto itself, which I appreciate.
Artistically, I am not a fan of this
book. The style is a strange blend of
manga and something akin to the blunt
aesthetic of late 90s cartoons (think
Angry Beavers). What this produces is a
style that is too detailed to be endearing,
yet too basic to be visually stimulating.
Other than the art, my only real issue
with this book comes from its translation
from webcomic into published series. A
webcomic will often have digressions in
its plot—little side stories that the artist/
author will present in the middle of a
larger narrative in order to give themselves
a break. With traditional comics, the
artist/author can simply step away and
pick up from where they left off after
a couple days, but with webcomics, a
lot of their popularity is maintained by
consistency. This means they need to
have a consistent publishing schedule,
so they need to put up something, even
if it is a digression from their currently
running plot. When Gunnerkrigg Court
was published into a collected work, these
digressions were left in, and therefore
they became a bit of an annoyance.
Overall, I don’t regret picking this volume
up, and would probably recommend it
to a friend who may be into school life
drama—but | probably won't be picking
up the second volume for myself.

Image via gunnerkrigg.wikia.com

 

   
   

Getting into

arts // no. 9

Marvel Comics

> A recommended reading list for newcomers

Greg Waldock
Staff Writer

 

Comics are damn hard to break
into. Thousands of issues, volumes
with the same numbers, events
spanning multiple timelines...

it can bea lot to take in.

Fortunately, there’s an easy way
to start out. Rather than buying
individual issues at a comic store,
seek out volumes, which are multiple
comics in one larger book. It’s a
much easier way for a new fan to
adjust to the unique comic style.

Here’s a series of volumes—
all available at Surrey libraries or
at Marvel’s website—that act as
great introductions to the Marvel
universe, and aren't bogged down
by the ridiculously convoluted
history of the franchise.

Avengers World, by

Hickman and Spencer

An introduction to a new Avengers.
It’s a great starting-off point with its
excellent art, writing, and pacing.
Googling some of the lesser-known
characters is always good, but you
really don’t need any background

information that isn’t supplied in-book.

Just assume that if they aren't huge
famous characters like Captain America
or Iron Man, then they’re pretty much
new and unheard-of. Otherwise, that
Google rabbit hole will never end.

Ms. Marvel Vol. 1, by G.

Willow Wilson

The origin story for Kamala Khan, one
of the few Muslim Marvel characters.
It’s a fun series that doesn't take

itself too seriously. Everyone should
experience a good origin story when
they first start reading comics, and
this is one of the best that’s come out
recently. It does have some characters
or locales that are unfamiliar to
non-comic readers, but it’s all well
explained within the pages, so any more
investigation is entirely up to you.

Thor: God of Thunder Vol.

1, by Aaron and Ribic

Three different Thors across time
investigate the murder of gods around
the galaxy. Young Asshole Thor, Current
Avenger Thor, and Old Asshole Thor
have their stories spliced together

for a sweeping look at his life and
personality. It’s a wild and crazy glimpse
into how divinity works in the Marvel
universe, with great art and a horrifying
atmosphere of nihilistic dread.

Image via Marvel