Publisher's Weekly Review
Moriarty collects her Eisner-nominated supernatural-mystery webtoon into an irreverent if often derivative print debut. Out strolling and texting one day, unemployed 20-something Ellie McGuinness stumbles on a demon battle ("That guy's about to get turbo murdered!") and rescues Ichabod--a "paranormal detective" with a jack-o'-lantern for a head. With her mundane existence forever altered by the discovery that she has latent magical abilities (blue flames shoot from her hand when she steps between Ichabod and a wolflike monster with a skull head), Ellie agrees to train her powers as Ichabod's assistant and accompanies him on spooky gig work--a little bit Ghostbusters, a little bit Sherlock. She's thrust into an underworld populated by flirtatious demons, vengeful spirits, "mystery voids," cursed library books, and a host of other quirky softcore-horror delights. Moriarty's color cues, angular trick shots, and other cinematic framing enhance the caper's more dynamic sequences. Peppered with jokes and sardonic literary references (there's a humanoid beetle named Greg Samson, and Alice--of Wonderland--shows up in a void-dimension), the script tends to rush characterizations and leans heavily on convenient contrivances. Still, it's an easily digestible and affectionately mixed blend of genre tropes. (Mar.)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Moriarty collects her Eisner-nominated supernatural-mystery webtoon into an irreverent if often derivative print debut. Out strolling and texting one day, unemployed 20-something Ellie McGuinness stumbles on a demon battle ("That guy's about to get turbo murdered!") and rescues Ichabod--a "paranormal detective" with a jack-o'-lantern for a head. With her mundane existence forever altered by the discovery that she has latent magical abilities (blue flames shoot from her hand when she steps between Ichabod and a wolflike monster with a skull head), Ellie agrees to train her powers as Ichabod's assistant and accompanies him on spooky gig work--a little bit Ghostbusters, a little bit Sherlock. She's thrust into an underworld populated by flirtatious demons, vengeful spirits, "mystery voids," cursed library books, and a host of other quirky softcore-horror delights. Moriarty's color cues, angular trick shots, and other cinematic framing enhance the caper's more dynamic sequences. Peppered with jokes and sardonic literary references (there's a humanoid beetle named Greg Samson, and Alice--of Wonderland--shows up in a void-dimension), the script tends to rush characterizations and leans heavily on convenient contrivances. Still, it's an easily digestible and affectionately mixed blend of genre tropes. (Mar.)
