TRADE REVIEW: Ash and Thorn Vol. 1 - Recipe for Disaster
Ash & Thorn, Vol. 1 - Recipe for Disaster is out October 14, 2020.
By Keigen Rea — This a fun book about a couple of old ladies fighting monsters and making some friends along the way. For me, it isn’t much more than that, but it also does what it does really well, and again, is super fun.
A septuagenarian is revealed to be the new “champion,” the person with the power and responsibility to protect the world from monsters. So there’s some monsters. And a teen sidekick. And baking (wit recipes in the back)!
As much as it is fun, it does ring as generic in some places. It feels like it cycles through all of the things you expect old people to say and it rings of unoriginality to a degree. On the flip side, I also feel like it subverts those statements, and it feels really good when it does it. I’m coming away from it liking the end result, but I don’t think it justifies all of the setup needed for those few moments.
My other problem with the series so far, is that it feels slight for a “season one.” At about 100 pages of art, it delivers a nice story, but it doesn’t feel meaty enough to be called a season. I’m excited to see where the story goes from here, but I feel like this is a pilot more than anything else.
On the other hand, I really love the prose stories in the backmatter (that may or may not be in the trade, but it seems like they will be). They aren’t connected to the plot of the comic, but there is really good writing there, and give the series more than most other comics at the same price. If I tried to highlight one, I’d end up listing them all, and at this price they’re basically free!
The art, lines by Soo Lee and colors by Pippa Bowland, are so so so good. Lee does an excellent job making the older ladies look, not just older, but more tired and lived in, and I really like how smooth the younger characters look. I think the biggest strength, though, is the book’s storytelling, particularly the layouts. While they aren’t complex, that means they’re easy to understand, and it helps the pacing off the series stay even throughout. It feels really good when the creative team drops down to three or fewer panels on a page, and it gives the artistic team room to show off.
In all, Ash and Thorn is a fun, if short, intro to a world and characters that I am interested in following further. I hope this team gets to do a follow up, especially because I think the final pages of this “season” sets up something fun!
Overall: If you want to punch a septuagenarian, or if you want to not punch one, you can enjoy this book. Buy it so we can see more old people either get punched or not get punched. 7/10
Ash and Thorn Vol. 1 - Recipe for Disaster: TRADE REVIEW
Ash & Thorn Volume 1 - Recipe for Disaster
Writer: Mariah McCourt
Artist: Soo Lee
Colorist: Pippa Bowland
Letterer: Rob Steen
Publisher: AHOY Comics
Price: $15.99
The apocalypse is nigh! The world needs a Champion, and the only heir to a sacred mystical lineage is...a little old lady? Meet Lottie Thorn, reluctant savior of the world, and her also-elderly trainer Lady Peruvia Ashlington-Voss. They might not look it, but these women are prepared to take on any Big Bad that comes along. But first, perhaps a nice cup of tea? Collects issues #1-5.
Buy It Digitally: Ash & Thorn Volume 1
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Keigen Rea has been enjoying morning tea, with two teaspoons of honey and a splash of oat milk. Find him talking about this nonsensical existence @prince_organa on Twitter, and other writing at other places, probably.
