Greetings, humans! Josh “Smokey-Hell” Nelson is back with my review of the latest offering from Dauntless Stories, one of my favorite independent comic companies. Issue #1 of “From Fire and Blood: A Jason Zhang Adventure” is out and I’ve read, enjoyed and reviewed it!
The art style, the story, THE COLORING… this is the Led Zeppelin of comics, where the sum of the parts is greater than any individual piece. Of course, each of those individual pieces also stand more than well enough on their own. Let’s break each of those down…
*Warning: this review does contain a few minor spoilers.*
“From Fire and Blood #1: A Jason Zhang Adventure” Review | Graphic Novel Breakdown
Visuals
What first struck me about Taylor Stauft’s art and Tobin Racicot’s lettering was its uniqueness. From the striking cover and its original lettering to the pure expressiveness of the faces, the artwork is striking. They beautifully capture the mixture of nature’s elements, with lightning in the sky meeting the mist of the roiling seas on more than one occasion, and everything from the death scenes right down to the background scenery just feels alive. For a description of art, I’m not sure that a higher compliment can be paid.
All I can say about the coloring is “wow.” If I continue the Led Zeppelin metaphor, the coloring of Sean Baggs (of the Baggs Brothers) is like John “Bonzo” Bonham. Hard-hitting, expressive, precise and explosive, this is the lifeblood driving this comic over the top as a visual feast. The juxtaposition of the first two deaths, one violent and dramatic, while the other barely perceptible, was expertly done. Subtleties like that went a long way toward building a world readers can easily immerse themselves.
Story
Lastly, I want to highlight the writing. I don’t know how Marcus Jimenez was able to pack such an incredible amount of exposition within 20 pages, especially without having the story feel too cramped. The pacing was exactly what it needed to be.
After starting with a flashback set 14 years prior introducing the plucky young protagonist, it skips ahead to the current day with an aged-up and confident Jason Zhang. He takes control of a harrowing situation without hesitation and the way he is written makes it difficult not to root for him; it’s in the vein of an Indiana Jones adventurer, except he isn’t an asshole. Maybe. I can’t wait for the next issue to see how the story continues!
Bottom Line
As I mentioned in the beginning, Dauntless Stories is fast becoming my favorite independent comic label. Both of the first two offerings I’ve had the chance to review blew away my expectations and left me wanting so much more. To that last point, Dauntless has launched a new Showcases feature. Every few months, they will present a carefully curated selection of new Dauntless titles from a range of creators, allowing you to pick a single title, mix and match or grab the full showcase bundle at a discount. “From Fire And Blood #1” is one of the launch titles, and I highly recommend checking out the Dauntless Showcases and getting yourself some of the best comics you will find!
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Thanks for reading my review of “From Fire and Blood #1: A Jason Zhang Adventure.” Remember, where there’s Smoke… there’s fire! For more entertainment and sports takes like these, find me on Bluesky, at The Smokeshow!
