The Imaginary Voyages of Edgar Allan Poe By McPherson. Czerniawski. Messi. Della Verde and Hartman.

Review by Joe X Young

 
It’s a good idea. Take a renowned Victorian author of horrific fantasy and make him the central character in a fantasy comic-book. Plenty of scope for some amazing storylines, or so you would reasonably think, though in this case it’s hard to tell from the first issue the sort of direction it is going to take. What I am reviewing is actually the first comic in a 12 part run, which although I may raise criticism for not reviewing the run in its entirety it’s actually like reviewing the first chapter of a book to see if it’s worth carrying on with on the basis of that introduction. This is where things are a little problematic. The storyline is quite straight forward in that Poe falls asleep and continues to fall, this time into a nightmare in which he is accompanied by a giant talking rat in a waistcoat. The rat in question becomes Poo’s guide (No, that’s NOT a typo) through the nightmare scenario in which many fantastical things happen. I won’t say too much about the story as basically I can’t. Reason being that it’ll give spoilers, and also that I only have the first issue so cannot say what it’s like in entirety, but based on the first issue I have a feeling that it could be at the very least a fun journey worth following.
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Whilst the story remains to develop, the same cannot be said about the artwork. Rendered in a cartoonish style it fits the story perfectly. Excellent cartooning and skilful inks make it a pleasure to look at. The characters have a stylish simplicity with each personality clearly defined and each panel is used to maximum effect. It’s all in all a very good start to what I can only assume would be a fun adventure.
 

Chapter I: Falling Down
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Edgar Allan Poe has lost everyone he ever loved and now he is losing his mind. Haunted by his dead wife and his literary failures, the poet tumbles into a fantastic world created by his genius...and his madness.

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