Oz #1 - The Calm Before The Storm - Review

J Scott Campbell

Oz #1 (of 6) - The Calm Before The Storm

Publication Date:
July 2013

Writer:
Joe Brusha

Pencils:
Rolando Di Sessa








Zenescope's introduction to Oz...

Together, the realms of power face a gathering storm that threatens to drown them all in darkness. Their only hope to stop it lies with an unlikely hero, a seemingly simple Kansas farm girl who dreams of a life of adventure. Unbeknownst to Dorothy, highborn blood flows through her veins and with it...the power to save Earth and the four realms...But Dorothy must learn to use her unharnessed power before the witches of Oz destroy her along with everyone else that stands in their way.

What's in this issue?

Artgerm

The dark illustration had me drawn in straight away. It's the middle of the night and a cloaked man with his dog (that looks more like a wolf) flee from one of the wicked witches of Oz. The dog carries something of importance to the wicked witch...this is not revealed in this issue.

A rather hot looking Dorothy (thank you Di Sessa) adopts the wild dog and names him Toto (cool right?). The witch turns up to Dorothy's farm demanding the dog back only to be refused. The story gets more interesting from there and so does the art work. The illustration of the dark witch is also pretty hot. This is a Zenescope title after all. I expect nothing less and nor do Zenescope's fans.

What can I expect from this issue?

A really well paced and engaging story by Brusha. I have been reading a lot of comics right now where so much content has been packed into a single issue that you just fall short of really enjoying the story. More content is not always better when it comes to comic books. The amount of content/story in this issue is perfect.

Ale Garza

The illustration by Di Sessa goes from dark to whimsical to serious and back again throughout the issue. You get a real sense that the story is playing out on two different realms. The art work makes this clear in the way the characters are dressed in each of the realms they appear in. This is mostly the case for the wicked witch and her bodyguards.

Facial expressions are perfect when it came to the wicked witch. I think Dorothy's facial expressions in some of the art panels seemed a bit off. Dorothy's expression seemed a bit 'washed out' or 'tired' at times when she needed to look concerned or inquisitive.

What made me laugh was that the wild or untamed Munchkins appear to use Australian slang which I am not sure is something I should be offended about as an Australian comic book geek, or whether this is simply Brusha's attempt at humour. If it is his attempt at humour I love it. I had a good laugh and so will you.

Eric Basaldua and Nei Ruffino

 
This title is up there for me with 'Robyn Hood' and the 'Wonderland' series of Zenescope titles. Oz is a quality comic with an interesting story to tell that is not just a sexy re-tell of the Wizard of Oz story. There are twists and turns to come and this is obvious from the very first issue.

The covers are worth a mention because they are brilliant. Some of the best artists have been assembled to kick off the first issue of this title. Artists like the amazing J Scott Campbell, Eric Basaldua, Ale Garza and of course the brilliant ArtGerm. Each cover is pictured as part of this review. Just check out how amazing they are.

So what do I give it?

9.5 out of 10.

Enjoy.