Weekly Comic Features: May 31, 2023

Appearances can be deceiving... 

We Are Scarlet Twilight #1 (w/a: Benjamin Morse)
Publisher: Red 5 Comics

I am honestly not a huge fan of books that try and tell a Golden Age type story, but hot damn if this book didn't come out swinging with some super cool twists and turns.

I can't explain what exactly happens without spoiling too much of the really cool surprises, but I'll explain what happens on the surface at least. Captain Lancet is your typical two-note 1930s super person. He has abilities that are better than normal men and radiation guns that somehow solve any problem thrown his way. He fights villains like Dr. Occulto and Madame Satanika. We find him trying to stop Madame Satanika and her cult "the Scarlet Twilight." After beating up a bunch of her underlings, he rushes off to try to stop the Madame herself at a local gala, utilizing his alter ego of Vlad Kingsley, Prince of Wallachia. If all this sounds rudimentary, let me drop some hints:

1. Lancet's guns maybe don't do what he claims they do
2. Big Red Omnipotent Eldritch Lord
3. ​

At times a parody and at others an exploration of the format, the book stays pretty close to the style it's based on. This only enhances the effect of the various surprises and shifts out of the format that Morse works in. It's a very cool story and promises a very wild ride. I was genuinely and very pleasantly surprised by this one.

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Catfight #1 (w: Andrew Wheeler, a: Ilias Kyriazis)
Publisher: IDW Publishing

Felix Lamarr is a spunky cat burglar living a fast life. He is in debt to some unsavory people, heisting priceless diamonds to pay off his debtors, and mostly just trying to avoid calls from his grandma. A solo act, Felix never teams up despite the generous offers he receives from a mysterious caller named "Schrodinger." However, stuff takes a turn when Schrodinger reveals that their target is none other than Felix's grandmother herself.

A web of theft, murder and intrigue, Catfight is an incredibly exciting first issue. The characters we've met are fun and organic, while the ones we haven't met seem eccentric enough to be the rogues gallery of a Shonen anime. The story in this first issue is fast and energetic, dragging the reader along to remarkable locations and dire situations page after page. Kyriazis art keeps the energy up by playing with layout in a fun and creative way during moments of exposition, while Dennis Yatras's colors fit the beautiful, vibrant locations perfectly and bring a pop to the whole thing.

A delight and genuinely fun to read, I highly recommend giving this one a chance. Great for heist/crime fans that like their stories more fun, less noir.