Emma Ríos

EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS IS AMAZING AND I WANT IT ALL IN MY LIFE ALWAYS.

But seriously, the first issue of this run is possibly one of the best issues I have ever read in any comic, ever. It's tight, it's funny, it establishes the character for new readers without boring established readers with exposition. It was just so well done. If I didn't already love DeConnick's writing, this would have sold me on her so hard.

Do yourself a favour and pick this up.

I did this backwards. Somehow I ended up following DeConnick on tumblr before I'd ever read any of her comics. I really liked her from her tumblr, then was surprised to find the library didn't have anything by her, especially as it seems she's fairly prolific. So I suggested this volume as a library purchase, and was pleased when it came in pretty quickly.

It seems that I can finally lay to rest both my declaration to be taking a break from superhero comics and also the need to show more apologize/explain when I keep going back. Because I'm definitely following both this and Hawkeye, and will probably look into other titles written by DeConnick & Fraction.

This volume was basically everything I'd come to expect from DeConnick's tumblr and more. A rich variety of female characters, not just now but across time. Some who liked each other, some who tolerated each other, and some who thought they liked each other until their agendas came into conflict. There is one kind of fanservicey shot of Ms. Marvel's ass that made me roll my eyes, but as there was an equal opportunity shot of Captain America on the facing page, I'll let it slide. This volume also does an above average job of what every new reboot has to do: manage to introduce enough backstory while simultaneously moving the story forward so that new readers feel neither lost not bored.

There are a lot of fantastical elements: time travel, alien technology, superpower transfers. But Carol (Ms./Captain Marvel) is so human/humane that it balances out.

A great first volume. I'm very curious to see where this series goes. show less

The art is as messy as the storytelling, which is as messy as its muddle of genres, and in less capable hands it would be a mess, but this is a dazzling and strange and delightful whirl of myth and fantsy about the daughter of Death and the hunt for her, and for the little girl who may replace death in some ineffable cycle, all as told by a dead rabbit to a butterfly. Story and art do not hold back from the weirdness but jumps right in and trusts the reader to immerse themselves in the story show more and the art and the idea that it all makes a kind of sense. There's nothing quite like it out there. show less

Silly me. I thought this was a western. It's not, although it is set in what looks like the American West sometime in the past, during the frontier years. But what it really is is a fairy tale, told to a butterfly by a rabbit, a story about life and death, about hell and some other things, and it's utterly fascinating. An old man and a young girl are traveling with a band of gunmen, telling a story as a carnival style performance for whatever people wish to pay. But the story is true and show more only a portion of what actually transpired. It's that story and the story of how the man and child became traveling companions that forms the heart of the tale. DeConnick has crafted a realm worth spending time in and Rios's art is perfectly suited for this gritty myth in the making. I'm looking forward to more. show less