God of Comics: Night Owl Society #1

God of Comics: Night Owl Society #1

Night Owl Society #1 (IDW Publishing)

IDW Publishing has made a name for themselves by taking older properties and building upon them: GhostbustersTMNTGI Joe,MASKTransformersJem and the Holograms, all their like. The truth is that all of them are good – all of them take every iteration of this properties and mash them up and take out the best bits and add new ones and make them better, but it’s rare for IDW to come up with something new.

By which I mean that IDW had very few in-house properties, but when they do decide to do something it tends to fucking rockLocke & Key comes immediately to mind. This is something new, something unique, and it sounds like it’s going to be interesting.

David is one of those lonely kids, a misfit who doesn’t fit in – not at home and definitely not at school. He’s got very few people he legitimately cares about, so when one of them is killed by the local mob, David takes it personally. Now, in a better world, the police would deal with it… but the police are corrupt. Look at those cops arresting the people that showed up to talk to their politicians in Flint, or any of the murderers that kill unarmed citizens every few days for no real reason.

No, the police are not a problem for the wealthy, and crime pays when you’re running things. David’s friend was killed by an actual mob boss, the sort of person who pays politicians and sits on corporate boards and isn’t going to be given any hassle by the police. There’s no justice, and David is old enough to understand that and young enough to be angry about it, young enough to do something about it, young enough to take matters into his own hands.

The thing about marginalized peoples is that they find one another and form bonds stronger than anything outside of those groups could possibly understand. Their ties aren’t based on faux-oppression or similar likes but by a simple need to not die, and when one of them does die the others tend to react badly.

In David’s case, that means organizing his friends, figuring out what skills they have, and going after the mob on their own. The police won’t do it and the politicians are actual criminals themselves, so someone has to make good. Why not David? Why not his friends? All they have to do is make the world a better place and avoid getting killed… or grounded.

Hey, the kids are alright. JamesVenhaus is on writing duties and this is a weird one: he’s a playwright whose done some awesome stuff, most notably Ugly People (about running an electoral campaign) andWeird Sisters (which is Macbeth set in a modern high school where the students are studying the Scottish Play). His work is quirky dark comedy with soul, the sort of thing I keep hoping one of the local theater troupes will do (hint, hint). He’s a treasure, is what I’m saying, and if this comic brings more attention to his work that can only be for the best.

Pius Bak is on art duties and I feel that should sell the comic all by itself. This is the comic I’m most looking forward to this week.

Do not miss it.

Living Myth Magazine
Originally Published: APRIL 25, 2017


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