Genre: Fantasy / People with Powers. There is 1 issue available (2007)

Plot

"'Stay back' was never supposed to mean 'die horribly'..."

A teenage school student finds out he has a special ability - is he alone as he fears, or are there others like him?

The story is a good introduction to the main character, Jamie, and his world. It is relatively slowly-paced but this is to be expected from a first issue, which needs to set the scene for future events. Hopefully there will be more action and intrigue next issue as the plot really gets going!

The Characters

The fact that there are just a couple of characters introduced in depth in this issue has given the author plenty of scope to flesh Jamie out enough that he becomes a believable person, even though fantastical things are happening to him.

Artwork

The art style uses screentone to create quite a unique atmosphere. This is in part due to the author tackling some relatively difficult situations to draw, such as darkened streets lit by pools of light from street lamps. Unfortunately some of the tones have printed somewhat inconsistently, producing some minor moire patterns. This doesn't hamper the story at all, but takes a bit of an edge off the professionalism of the book.

The characters are expressionate and although the artwork in general is probably just off professional standards, the fact that the artist has tackled so many expressions, poses and environments shows that her work can only get better - making issue 2 an exciting prospect!

Panelling is this issue's forte, with a good natural flow to the story and no cramped or hard-to-understand pages.

Extras

There is an author's blurb at the front of the book and a character sheet for Jamie at the back, which are a nice little window into who the artist is and how she produces her work.

Note: This book reads in right-to-left format, which felt a bit jarring as it is a UK publication and we only really expect to see this format used for imported Japanese manga. However if reading direction doesn't bother you then this won't impair your enjoyment of the comic.