The Comic: Bone
By: Jeff Smith
Type: Graphic Novel, originally done as several individual issues which were later collected into larger volumes, currently available in both black-and-white and colour. The volumes were later collected into the tomelike "One-Volume Edition," which as of this writing is still black-and-white only. (Hardly a bad thing, the linework rocks)
Content Rating: G. A few moments of sword violence, but nothing beyond that to worry any parents or sensitive/cautious readers out there.
Plot: Fone Bone, one of a race of cartoony whiteish creatures known simply as bones, finds himself lost in a desert after he and his cousins Phoncible "Phoney" Bone and Smiley Bone are run out of their hometown, Boneville. Through mere wandering, the trio end up in a place known only as The Valley, inhabited by human beings still living in a swords-and-dragons fantasy era. Unbeknownst to any of them, their arrival there will be the catalyst that nearly causes The Valley's mythology's equivalent of Armageddon.
Personal thoughts: I admit I haven't read a lot of high fantasy beyond Tolkien and Lewis, but I think I can safely say the fantasy elements of Bone are actually pretty well-crafted. It's a good mix of what's already familiar (swords, lost kingdoms, dragons) and some original stuff (primarily the mythology within The Valley's cultures, which becomes quite important to the story). It also maintains a very careful balance between silly humor and "serious" action moments...neither overwhelms the other, instead they work together (mostly through character...a pair of unnamed Rat Creature scouts and Smiley Bone are examples of characters that are mainly used for comic relief, characters like The Locust and Captain Tarsil are examples of primarily "serious" characters, and ones like Gran'ma Ben, The Great Red Dragon, and Fone Bone himself meet in the middle, having both humorous and serious moments). I also like the contrast between the art styles granted to the Bones versus the rest of the valley inhabitants--the Bones are very simply drawn and cartoony (especially recalling the art style of the late Walt Kelly, best known for his comic strip Pogo) while everyone else is drawn more realistically enough to make a difference, to emphasize the Bones' "otherness." Despite the one-volume edition's telephone-book-like thickness, the story also felt just the right length to me...it neither dragged on nor cut off too soon, and ends on a satisfying note. Whether you're a fan of fantasy looking for something just a tiny bit fresher or just someone who enjoys comics (or heck, just someone who likes an entertaining multi-mood story), Bone's definitely worth a look, and the fact that it's available in smaller, seperate volumes in addition to the big tome makes it easier to "sample" or to buy in installments if you're frequently low on book money.
Holden Out.
1 comment:
Bone is a classic! A little weird, but a classic non-the-less. At a first glance Bone looks like a hard one to get into (because of the clashes of styles and ideas) but sooo worth it. Now I have to go and look up the creater because I think he did a lot of other weird stuff one of which being really creepy... I think it involved a penguin...
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