Comic Book Review: Kill Shakespeare #9

Written By: Conner McCreery & Anthony Del Col

Artist: Andy Belanger

Colorist: Ian Herring

Cover Artist: Kagan McLeod

Letterer: Shawn Lee

Editor: Tom Waltz

My Awe-Inspiring Opinion

After two months of waiting, issue #9 of Kill Shakespeare finally graced my e-mail inbox with its presence.  The first paragraph of the e-mail states that William Shakespeare returns from the grave!

Wait…WHAT?!?!  They just gave away the ending!!!!

After shaking off the anger I had for Del Col and McCreery in giving away the surprise, I told myself that there’s got to be more to this issue than simply bringing Shakespeare into the story.  Even with the foreknowledge of Shakespeare’s appearance, I still found myself shocked at what transpired.

I opened up the issue to find another dilemma had occurred; this time between Hamlet and Romeo.  As we learned last issue, Romeo is actually alive and Hamlet has fallen for Juliet.  So who’s gonna get the girl?  Of course the Juliet of Del Col’s imagination is much stronger than one would expect, and I suspect she’s going to break up any man-fight that occurs.

But this is only a side plot to help build on the already existing tension of Hamlet and his unwanted “chosen one” status.  Hamlet’s trip through the Globe is tense enough what with the evil-looking sprites and massive wads of paper with scribbling on them grabbing at his leg as he waddled through the swamp water.  Ian Herring’s ability to create a tense situation with his mastery over one shade of color is one of the best in the business.  I love how well he applies shading to the most intense scenes, verging on overkill…but not quite.  (I like his style!)

 

Ian Herring is an amazing Penciller, don’t doubt that for a second.  However, I do find trying to figure out who’s who can be a little jolting at times.  Iago and Hamlet look so much alike, I thought Falstaff was holding a knife to Hamlet’s neck instead of Iago.  That was the moment where, for only a second, I thought that Del Col and McCreery wrote in the most abrupt plot twist in the history of comics!  But this minor setback in the artistic side of things shouldn’t detract anyone from enjoying the incredibly expressive and unique art provided by Mr. Herring.

Now, let’s focus in on the most interesting part of issue #9, the meeting between Hamlet and Shakespeare…or the one we THINK to be Shakespeare.  I’m not completely convinced that this drunkard with a death wish is in fact the infamous writer; he seems to be a little too seedy to be the one everyone in this Shakespearean world worships and follows; he never actually reveals his identity verbally now does he?

Whether this man is or isn’t Shakespeare, however, doesn’t mean the entire interaction isn’t interesting and thought provoking.  And the magical dagger scrapping across the floor, and flying idly in the air, thrusting towards the two men left me in such a state of awe that I…well…had to reread the entire issue right away in hopes that it would end differently.  No such luck.

My Majestically Climactic Conclusion

Issues 1 through 9 have been solid all the way through, being almost perfect.  I can only assume that there are only three more issues remaining for this particular arc.  How in the world this is going to wrap up in three more issues I have no idea.  But I’m excited to see what happens!

9 out of 10 stars

Comic Book Review: Kill Shakespeare #8

Literary & Artistic Credits

Writer: Conor McCreary & Anthony Del Col

Penciller:  Andy Belanger

Colorist: Ian Herring

Letterer: Neil Uyetake

Cover Art: Kagan McLeod

Editor: Tom Waltz

My Awe-Inspiring Opinion

Reading Shakespeare was never something I fancied back in high school; I’m sure my peers shared this sentiment.  There’s all these “big” words, connected with more “big” words, that form “big” sentences which are too “big” for my puny mind to comprehend right?  I always had difficulty in school understanding what was being said – I wasn’t alone in this either. But for me, the frustration with reading Shakespeare was not due to the level of difficulty found in the literature, but with the fact that there was no visual to go along with the reading.

Is Shakespeare’s material poetic, beautiful, moving, and well written?  Of course!  But they are plays, meant to be executed as a play for the eyes to behold.  Why make people read it when watching it serves the purpose Shakespeare always intended for his work?  Eight issues into this title and I’m still geeking out over how well a Shakespearean style story works within the comic book genre. 

Issue #8 brings us into the company of Hamlet, Juliet and company in a much more wholesome light.  No longer are they arguing amongst themselves.  They have found the good within each other that seems to be hidden under the shroud of their most inner moral conflicts.  Hamlet and Juliet have taken to each other quite nicely, finally admitting to what we all already knew.  Othello attempts to asses his own life choices and face his demons, while Falstaff continues to be the comic relief who serves as the peacemaker among friends.  While the team decides to split up in their search for Lord Shakespeare, Romeo, Othello and Iago all run into a very interesting road block…one which may put a damper on some RECENTLY revealed plot threads.

I must say, the mistrust that was flowing throughout this was beginning to become a little overbearing.  While there is a lighthearted undertone to this series, the force driving the whole story is the dark and menacing plot where everyone betrays everyone else, or nobody trusts those within their own band of adventurers.  It’s nice to see McCreery and Del Col bring trust and a sense of hope into the story’s main characters.  If only everyone COULD be trusted, then Iago could have actually been am amazing asset to the team.  But, having a spy for the bad guys really does help spice everything up.

There was a moment where I tipped my head in disappointment (only for a moment mind you) and wondered if having Juliet climb up the ladder to Hamlet above in the balcony was border lining on the corny side.  But, such is the life in the world of Shakespeare.  Corn and cheese..can’t have a Shakespearean tale without one.

And of course, the art by Mr. Andy Belanger is nothing short of excellent.  His work, and I do believe I’ve said this before, reminds me so much of Amanda Conner’s work in Power Girl; very cartoonish, but still very mature and artistic.  I was disappointed at how much of a decrease there was in actions sequences in comparison to last month’s issue, but it doesn't mean that I can’t enjoy scenes such as the one with Lady Macbeth in the graveyard.  (click to enlarge) There is that bewitching feeling that the colors seem to radiate behind the shadows and light from the lantern.  Ian Herring knows no bounds when it comes to bringing out the shine within each and every panel.

I have to be honest, I DID NOT see that ending coming!  I wont give it away as this issue hasn’t even been released to the comic book stores yet, (December 22^nd, pick it up!!) but do not fret, it will blow you away!  Conor and Del Col did one hell of a job at giving importance to this character’s roll in the story, but was equally good at giving it a level of unimportance too, making me think it was merely a means to explain the protagonist’s point of view.  Next issue should be a doozy!

My Majestically Climactic Conclusion

I can’t stress enough how bad of an idea it is NOT to read this series.  It’s enticing and exciting, shining better than any other series in the world of comics.  The only series I would say meets Kill Shakespeare’s level of quality, it would be the Secret Six,

Rating: 10 out of 10

Writing: 10

Art: 10

Themes: 10

Comic Book Review: Kill Shakespeare #1 - 4

Literary & Artistic Credits

Writer: Anthony Del Col, Conner McCreery

Penciller and Inker: Andy Belanger

Colorist: Ian Herring

Letterer: Robbie Robbins

My Awe-Inspiring Opinion

Kill Shakespeare had entered into my ears the first time by way of NPR, when writer Anthony Del Col had been interviewed on one of the stations many shows, Talk Of The Nation.  While the concept sounded interesting, I threw this comic book endeavor by the writer as nothing more than an unintelligent spoof of Shakespeare’s classic stories and a cheap way of earning a few extra bucks.  I mean really, how can many people take a title like “Kill Shakespeare” seriously?  When I first heard of the title, the initial response that popped out in my head was “Oh, so subtract ‘Bill’ and insert ‘Shakespeare’ and you have an uncreative title for an unintelligent plot base.”  Needless to say, I was unimpressed and had no desire to pick up Kill Shakespeare. 

A few weeks later I received an e-mail from Anthony Del Col himself, requesting that I read his comics and review them on my blog.  (Who knew my blog was read by anyone important huh?)  As an incentive, he sent me the first four issues of the series via e-mail in PDF format absolutely free. (The fourth issue hadn’t been released at the time I received the e-mail by the way.)  I responded with a positive response to Mr. Del Col agreeing to read and review his comics with the assurance that I will be completely and utterly honest with my opinions of his work.  Having no second thoughts on the part of Del Col, I read the first four issues the very next day.  And, believe it or not, this series might actually become one of my favorites!

Del Col surprised me by keeping the comedy to a minimum and the drama strong and fierce.  Even more so, Del Col not only gives this series a depth beyond expectations, but continues in the literary quality that Shakespeare established in his day.  The plot is that the characters from all of Shakespeare’s stories have come to the realization that some wizard with the same name as their creator has a power beyond recognition, a power hidden within his quill.  King Richard the 3^rd requests the assistance of Hamlet in a quest to not only attain the quill, but also kill its owner.  But with the help of famous characters like Juliet, Othello, and Falstaff, Hamlet soon discovers that not everything is as it seems.

Del Col does an amazing job at making an entirely new story with these classic characters; keeping true to what their individual stories make them out to be as characters while still making them new and vibrant all at the same time.  I was shocked to see how creative the story is.  I was expecting a comedy, but instead I discovered a piece of literary work that would equal the intense and vivacious nature that Shakespeare had brought into his stories centuries ago. 

Most pleasing was how Del Col used the original characterizations for each character that Shakespeare had established when he wrote them, but there was no shout outs and copied dialogue that dulled or dumbed down the story.  Rather, the dialogue and literary components felt new and fresh even though it still felt as if I was reading one of Shakespeare’s actual plays. 

But what made this read most pleasing was the fact that it IS a comic book.  How many times did we read Shakespeare in high school with no visual counterpart?  Teachers constantly expected their students to read the plays without playing a video of one of the productions.  (At least that was my experience.) Kill Shakespeare allows us to read a Shakespearean style story in the way it was intended…by seeing it!

Andy Belanger, having never heard of him before, is an amazing artist.  His style is very reminiscent of Amanda Conner’s with her work on Power Girl.  The cartoonish style did not detract from the story in the least.  In fact, it enhanced it.  It allows us to read a very serious story with the understanding that this is supposed to be a fun and refreshing read.

My Majestically Climactic Conclusion

I agree with what Del Col said about the idea behind the story, and hopefully people CAN become excited about reading Shakespeare after reading these comics.  This was such a good idea and I’m glad Del Col and McCreery turned this into a comic book rather than a video game.  Hopefully, after this arc is over, the literary duo will continue with this series as the potential for Kill Shakespeare to be one of the best comic book titles to come around in a long time is HUGE!

Rating: 10 out of 10

Writing: 10 (issues 1-4)

Art: 10 (issues 1-4)

Themes: 10 (issues 1-4)

And for your viewing pleasure, here is the trailer for the series…