When it comes to musicals, if I don’t enjoy the music I’m not going to enjoy the show. I have a similar issue with comics. If I don’t take to the artwork, Ray Bradbury could have written the story and I’d be hard pressed to continue reading the series. This poses a problem from time to time when reviewing comics. Say I’m on the fence about a story, if the artwork is through the roof fantastic I may be swayed to review the comic a bit better than I otherwise intended. What happens when the artwork annoys me so much I just can’t see past my minor issues with the story?
Thus is the case with Bluewater Comics follow up to the well received 2008 miniseries Insane Jane written by Darren G. Davis. Not being familiar with the original comic I was at a loss on my initial reading of the first issue of Insane Jane: Avenging Star co-written by Darren G. Davis and Zach Hunchar. Completely thrown off by GMB Chomichuks artwork (which I’ll discuss later in the review) I had to re-read the first few pages a couple of times just to harness any interest to continue reading. That is a big issue for me when it comes to enjoying comics. However, I know well enough that first impressions of any kind aren’t always the best impressions so I persevered and finished issue 1.
Did I enjoy the comic? That is a tricky question. Initially I’d have to say no, I didn’t care for the issue. That is not to say I didn’t enjoy parts of the story, or that I have no appreciation for the comic itself. The idea of a girl living in an insane asylum who believes herself to be a super hero is quite fantastic actually, and I rather enjoyed seeing the concept unfold throughout the pages. Unfortunately, I simply could not get emotionally attached to Jane or any of the other characters. Keeping in mind this is the first issue, I am hesitant to give Insane Jane: Avenging Star a bad mark.
As I mentioned earlier my biggest problem was the artwork. I did not like the artwork for this issue. To some, the skewed realism may seem apropos to the content of the fiction. I toyed with this idea for a while, and though I don’t disagree with said idea, I simply didn’t take to GMB Chomichuks work plain and simple.
I read comic’s for fun. I couldn’t tell you who the top sought after artists or writers are. I don’t make a fuss over who’s drawing a certain cover. I like what I like and that’s all there is to it. I realize by saying thus any hard core comic book enthusiasts reading this review may completely disregard my critique of this comic; as they should. My intention is to peak your interest in either direction so you may be curious enough to go out and pick up a copy and make your own decision. My opinion is noted, Insane Jane is a little too insane for me, but check it out for yourself and decide for yourself.
Issue 1 of Insane Jane: Avenging Star hits stores in August.
I agree with the reviewer here. The story idea is compelling but the art is awful. Normally I welcome art that is challenging or that offers something different, however that is not the problem here. The problem is the art is poorly done, it’s sloppy and unprofessional looking work posing as something challenging and different.