Review: The Bizarre Adventures of Gilbert and Sullivan

Any comic by Laura Howell is always fun and entertaining, whether it's Les Pretend in The Beano or her own creations. Laura's latest book, The Bizarre Adventures of Gilbert and Sullivan is a fine collection of her creator-owned strips of the Victorian composers and their secret life as defenders of the realm. Yes, that's what they did apparently. Who knew? 

The strips in the book are, as Laura tells us, "re-drawn versions of very sketchy and loosely-scripted strips dating from 2001 to 2006". The originals were funny and these re-crafted ones are even funnier. The beauty of comics is that anything can happen, and in these pages it certainly does, with Gilbert and Sullivan having strange and surreal escapades. It won the Best Comic Award at the International Manga and Aninie Festival, and whether you love or hate Manga you should enjoy this as it both embraces and spoofs the Manga styles in equal measure. There are also elements of traditional British comics in there too of course, as one would expect with Laura's background in comics, but more than anything this is distinctly Laura Howell doing things her own way, and it's brilliant. 

The book comprises 17 short stories of 2 to 6 pages in length, drawing inspiration from Gilbert and Sullivan's compositions and Victorian society. In the back, there's a Guest Art Gallery by other talented artists such as Jamie Smart, David Leach, Hunt Emerson, Woodrow Phoenix and more. 

This really is a must-have book for fans of humour comics and a great addition to the swelling ranks of modern British comics. 

The Bizarre Adventures of Gilbert and Sullivan by Laura Howell. 76 pages, softback, published by Soaring Penguin Press and available now from their website here:
http://www.soaringpenguinpress.com/publications/graphic-novels/the-bizarre-adventures-of-gilbert-and-sullivan-pre-order/

New UK comic: Meanwhile...

I bought this comic at the Lakes International Comic Festival back in October but I've only just gotten around to plugging it here. The debut of a new British comic is always something to welcome and Meanwhile... No.1 is an interesting package. Published by Soaring Penguin Press, the 56 page anthology for mature readers contains a variety of stories and styles. The first thing that's notable about it is that it features a brand new Strangehaven chapter by Gary Spencer Millidge. 

As many of you will know, Strangehaven was a independently published comic by Gary that was centred around a seemingly ordinary English village that contained dark secrets. It was favourably compared in certain ways to TV's Twin Peaks but Strangehaven had its own unique character. If you were a fan of the comic you'll be pleased to know that Meanwhile... features an excellent new 16 page chapter in full colour, recapping the events so far and moving things forward. (And if you've never read Strangehaven, treat yourself for Christmas to Volume 1 - or all three volumes, today!)  

The other strips in Meanwhile... include a selection of complete strips and the first part of the serials 10 Minutes by Yuko Rabbit, and The Bad, Bad Place by David Hine and Mark Stafford. It's Hine and Stafford's ten pager that's another highlight of the issue I think, with an intriguing script and fantastic artwork.

The one-off strips are a mixed bag but all worth a read with some distinctive artwork. They include the three Comics Unmasked Competition winners and my particular favourite was the amusing Peas in our Time by Sean Bright.

The intention is for Meanwhile... to be published every two months. Issue 1 is still available from the publisher at a very reasonable £4.95 and subscriptions are available. To find out more go to the Soaring Penguin website here:
http://www.soaringpenguinpress.com/