In case my extended absence escaped you yahoos – well, f*#$ you too. I don’t need your love. I don’t need your readership. I don’t need the five solid gold mansions and rocketcar that your loyal following have bought me. No, I need only the solace only the cold glow of an LCD monitor, a case of Pibb, the crippling pain of carpal tunnel, and thirty stacks of minibooks can bring me. Maybe this new review format will ease my pain, or maybe never having to read another issue of Drax The Destroyer will restore my faith in comics. Okay – let’s make a happy sandwich!
Henagi The Ninja Girl #1
Written, penciled, inked, lettered, and grammared. by Ben Seto
If Henagi had been published about four years ago, it probably would be considered a somewhat fresh take on ninja comics. The story surrounds a bunch of teenage ninjas-in-training who live in an isolated ninja town. There’s no real identifiable timeframe (like Edo era vs. modern day), and there are some rivalries between the main characters (Yumi, a kunoichi with potential; Zien, the bishounen; and the title character, who’s a lazy, thieving grand-daughter of the clan Elder). There are hijinks, mysterious missions to other ninja “countries,” and ninja magic techniques using “seals.”
Yeah, it sounds a lot like Naruto to me, too.
Ben Seto claims to have created Henagi in the late 90’s, and if he did, I think he missed his chance to make an impact with this story and character. As an American artist drawing in the manga style, he’s actually quite good, but the genre of art and timing will also make it so that Henagi will never be considered separately from Naruto. That’s a real shame, because despite the similarities, the book and characters are quite entertaining. Opting for a FLCL approach, Seto’s madcap takes on at least three different genre of manga are as funny as they are hyperactive. Seto may not be the best writer of manga parody out there, but he’s got a sense of timing and character development and is reasonably consistent throughout his book, putting him head and shoulders over most of his peers in the indie world.
Another real strength of Henagi is Seto’s art, which is very clean and very expressive. Too many aspiring manga artists have no sense of the importance of line thickness, proportional consistency, or all the other qualities that make manga a enduring art form beyond the big eyes and crazy hair. Seto’s art is pretty solid and probably belies a background in animation.
If you can find it, picking up Henagi is probably a better buy at $2.95 than most of the books you’ll find stocked. Visit Ben Seto at www.blacksheepcomics.com for availability.
Henagi The Ninja Girl gets 3.5 shuriken out of a possible 5 – ninjalicious, but a little tart for my tastes.
Down #1 – #3
words: Warren Ellis
pencils: Tony Harris and Cully Hamner
inks: Ray Snyder abd Dexter Vines
colors: J.D. Mettler
Top Cow Comics
Warren Ellis takes a break from conspiracy theories, low-intensity horror, and near-term sci-fi to bring us Down, which is probably as close to a straightforward mobster drama as he’s capable of writing. Ellis is a little limited in the creation of his protagonists – in Down, we get #2 of 2, that being the hot, surly chick who kicks ass – but he works well within his limitations. Deanna Ransome chain-smokes, looks good in a tank top and leather, and butts heads with her superiors, all while John Woo-ing her way through the underworld. It’s all a bit Jenny Sparks/Henry Bendix, but Ellis’ anti-authority formula still works well, although it’s getting a bit familiar. In Issues 1 – 3, Deanna manages to slaughter a major gang and infiltrate the biggest mob in the city, with the intention of bringing back an undercover cop-gone-godfather back to answer for his betrayals. While the first two issues make you think you’re reading a standard undercover-cop story, Issue 3 hints at what will probably be the major, driving plot twist – that perhaps, like her target, Deanna will “go native” and devote herself to the gang. It’s not that compelling a read until then – longer than normal for Ellis to reveal his hook – but now, I’m drooling for Issue 4.
The character designs are by the incredible Tony Harris, whose Shade-the-daughter gets a hard-boiled Hispanic overhaul. Culley Hamner takes over the pencils in Issue two, and unlike Starman, the shift in art isn’t a sudden and jarring dissonance. Both men illustrate this gun-packing noir with the flair and panache it deserves. Down is the monthly I’m now looking most forward to in the immediate months, and considering the competition (Ex Machina and Y), that ain’t no small thing.
Down gets 17 bullet casings out of 20. You gotta problem with those odds? Talk to Benny the Fishmoner or shoot me an email (no pun intended).
