The Grave Diggers Union Vol. 1

Written by Wes Craig
Art by Toby Cypress

I love Wes Craig's artwork, especially on Deadly Class, but when I saw that this new series was being published by Image with him writing, and the consistently interesting Toby Cypress drawing, I was intrigued, but also decided to tradewait the book, as I've been trying to cut down on my pullfile list.  Last week, Craig was at TCAF, so I was happy to buy the book directly from him, and get it signed.

The Gravediggers Union is kind of a poor man's BPRD.  In this world, the men (because they are pretty much always men) who dig graves in cemeteries are also the people who guard the living from zombies, vampires, and other forms of undead malfeasance.  The thing is, lately, things have been getting a lot worse than anyone can remember, with attacks happening with greater frequency and intensity, and with deadly ghost storms showing up all over the place.

This has something to do with an ancient cult called the Black Temple, some elder gods, and a storyline that digs back to mankind's earliest days.  Things don't look good, but the Union itself is more concerned with following protocol, which frustrates Cole, a veteran grave digger who has a family connection to what's going on - his estranged daughter is possibly the prophet that the Black Temple has been waiting for.

I enjoyed the story, and the way that Craig built up some of the characters in the GDU, and established the animosity between Cole and his superior in the union.  I particularly enjoyed Morphea, the witch who Cole turns to for help, despite the fact that it is forbidden for the Union to communicate with witches.

Cypress's art is always a bit of an acquired taste, but I've always liked it.  The colourist, Niko Guardia uses digital washes to denote movement or atmosphere, and that's something that annoys me.  Like the paint splatters in Wytches or the weird lines all over Supreme: Blue Rose, I find it detracts from the story more than it adds, but maybe that's just me being old and traditionalist.  It does seem to be catching on lately, so I'm going to have to deal with it.

This was a good book, and I look forward to checking out the second volume some time.  That's the problem with trade-waiting - it's going to be forever before I get back into this series...

Brass Sun Vol. 1: The Wheel of Worlds

Written by Ian Edginton
Art by INJ Culbard

I became a fan of INJ Culbard's work when he drew The New Deadwardians, one of the last good Vertigo series, and I've always been aware of Ian Edginton's writing, enjoying things like his Hinterkind series, also at Vertigo.  When Titan started publishing Brass Sun as a miniseries, it looked interesting, and then I came across this beautiful oversized hardcover at a good price, and was happy to grab it.

Brass Sun: The Wheel of Worlds is a very interesting piece of work.  It's set in a clockwork universe designed and set in motion by a very powerful being, populated with humans.  The various planets circle the titular brass sun, which has been slowly losing power, threatening all life.

The problem is that a great war broke out between the various planets generations ago, and since it ended, they've been left to develop in isolation, denying even the existence of life in other places.  There is a way to fix the sun, using a "key" that has been divided among the different spheres, but the knowledge of it is more or less lost.

On one planet, Hind Leg, a young girl named Wren is given the knowledge that her grandfather has been compiling in secret, and when he is arrested and killed, she has to set out to try to save everyone.  Along the way, she meets one of the priests who live and toil in the spars between the planets, and he assists her.  Together, they begin to travel to the different strange worlds, gaining allies and enemies as they go.

INJ Culbard's minimalist art works well here, as he creates strange and interesting cultures, all sharing the clockwork, steampunk aesthetic that the universe was designed with.  There's obviously a lot that doesn't make sense here, because the mechanics behind this world are impossible, but it's still a very enjoyable read.  The different worlds that Wren passes through feel like they could sustain a number of different stories, and the character work is impressive.

I'm always a sucker for an overly developed fictional world, and Edginton has done a wonderful job of building this universe.  I was a little disappointed to realize that this is just the beginning of a longer story, but I do see that Volume 2 is supposed to be published this month, although I can't find any actual proof of that having happened yet.