http://comicbookdb.com/issue.php?ID=148222
Writer/Artist: Warren Ellis, Paul Duffield
Publisher: Avatar, $19.99
Why You Should Know It:
Freakangels is a post-apocalyptic steampunkish drama, and I'm not really sure if that's a good description but it's what I'm going with. It follows a group of vaguely powered people that have pretty much laid claim to an area of a now flooded London and have turned it into a safehaven of sorts. The story hints that the disaster that flooded London and made the world the way it is now is potentially their fault, as all of the main characters were all born at the same moment and they all have access to a range of mental powers, including mind control, telepathy, and more.
via FreakAngels
One of the interesting things about this series is that I believe it is a good example of one of the current trends in the industry, which is publishing online (free in Freakangels case, and weekly) and then collecting the material in book format down the road. I believe that this is the general direction Marvel comics and the other larger publishers are aiming at. The success of this sales and marketing model for Freakangels is noteworthy because I think the marketing push is largely grounded in the popularity of an individual writer and certain genre styles(steampunk/goth). I wouldn't recommend this model for all types of publications because some don't have the strength of a guaranteed established fan base and others don't lend themselves to weekly online publishing either. A pure superhero fan or war comic fan is not the same thing as a hardcore steampunk fan, who is someone likely to be reading an online comic anyway.
This title is a fairly easy sell simply because Warren Ellis writes it. He has an incredibly strong fan base and then you cross that with people who are generally interested in the steampunk sub-genre and it really doesn't need any other effort to push it. It doesn't hurt though that the art looks like it is vaguely influenced by manga, so you can get some additional interest from that.
via BruVu
Personal review:
I do like a lot of Ellis' work, and this one does shine very well. I often times can get a little tired of his scripting since his characterization and dialogue can be a bit repetitive. One character often sounds exaclty like every other character, and that spreads across all his work. Sometimes though the strength of the plot and the art can push past that, and Freakangels is very successful in this. A large part of the art is the coloring and shading. I get the feeling if those were removed and we just had the line art the series would loose a lot of its appeal. Which isn't to say the art is bad, but the coloring is very striking and I think it's what catches the eye the most. I personally am not much of an online reader, so I have very little interest in following this as it is released. For this style of storytelling, I like it all bound and collected for a straight sit through. The panel layouts make more sense when you realize the original presentation, because often times each page follows a 4-panel setup that lends itself to daily instalments.
If you like this, then try:
Steampunk, Aetheric Mechanics, league of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Scarlet Traces, Transmetropolitan, Wasteland
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