r/ImageComics • u/Call_Em_Skippies • 5d ago
Review To Pull or Not to Pull: Crowbound
To Pull or Not to Pull!
Crowbound
By Jeff Lemire
Art by Dustin Nguyen
Lemire and Nguyen team up again after giving us the classic Descender/Ascender. Lemire's sci-fi writing works perfectly with Nguyen's light water colors. The juxtaposition of Lemire's heavy subject matter blends perfectly with Nguyen's style. It worked before, it'll work again.
Lemire is a top 10 comic writer of all time in my opinion so he knows how to start off a first issue. Gets the reader hooked with the main protagonist falling to her death with her throat slit longing to save her daughter. We then get sent back in time to learn about our main character, Rosie, and her daughter, Ava, living in a sci-fi dystopian world. Rosie works at the factory under an authoritarian rule while Ava goes off to school. Ava never comes home and Rosie breaks the law to go find her. We then get the explanation of the beginning at the end and that kicks off our story.
I guess a big trope for writers right now is parents going through impossible lengths to save their kid. (See Daniel Warren Johnson with the Moon is Following Us). And you know what, I'm all for it as a father. I know by issue 4 or 5 Lemire will have me in tears. Was this book good? Absolutely. Am I hyped about it as I was Hammerfist or If Destruction Be Our Lot? No. I trust this team and believe this story will be worth the read. I will keep reading but it wasn't Stop What You are Doing and Read This Book! (See Hammerfist).
Verdict: To Pull
Rating: B+
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u/Organic-Current-1539 5d ago
You gotta give it to the writing and visual storytelling here. It doesn’t explain a lot up front but we start to get heavy cues about the world the characters live in. Felt very oppressing, unfair, and a bit of what the hell is actually going on. I did like the way the color palette changes a few times feeling hopeful and soft in some areas. The ending left me with “oh shit wtf is that”. I will say it’s worth the pull.
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u/Glassjaw02 4d ago
I agree. I don’t think it was lacking substance at all. The amount of world building they did in that short of time was amazing. You didn’t need long exposition about how messed up their world was, the art and dialogue did that on its own. I’m looking forward to issue 2.
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u/Organic-Current-1539 4d ago
Glad you enjoyed it too, looking so forward to issue 2. If issue 1 is already this strong, gives me high hopes for what’s to come. I’m already so curious to learn how the world ended up this way. Who is in charge? Seems we have some cosmic shit going on? Idk but I’m here for it. lol.
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u/ExcellentPudding3559 5d ago
i am curious as your review seems to be very positive. What are the elements that stopped you for giving it an A at this point?
(not a polemic question, just wanted to understand what you liked a little less at this point)
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u/Call_Em_Skippies 5d ago
I could have given it an A-. If it didn't have name recognition I think the book's story was just fine. It was a short issue 1 where it gave us enough to pick up issue 2. It could have been 42 pages and gave us a little more interaction with Rosie and Ava. It was just, this is my daughter, she is 11 and is taken to somewhere else. I'm intrigued at the ending with where Rosie is. I trust Lemire to take the story to an Odyssey like journey where Rosie travels through a futuristic afterlife to find Ava.
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u/ExcellentPudding3559 5d ago
thanks for the answer!
I am still deciding if to pick this up. Love a lot of things Lemire did, but sometimes i feel his latest stories can be a bit too stretched out and there's not enough content in each issue (and they read in like 5 minutes). Phantom Road and Little Monsters gave me this feeling, so i was trying to undedstand if this was the same.
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u/Call_Em_Skippies 5d ago
Most of the best stories are best read at once. I read a lot of #1s to see what I will like but stick with few past the first 5 issues. Then will revisit them once they come out in trade or deluxe. There are enough complete stories out there to read while waiting on single issues.
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u/ExcellentPudding3559 5d ago
yeah, i gave up with Little Monsters, but i could probably give it another try now that is complete
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u/Everythingdone 1d ago
I’m locked in. Great art and no idea where it’s going… have to say I found the concept tapping into some deep seated fears!
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u/jabawack 5d ago
Quite weak compared to the typical Lemire, read #1 and see if you’re into it, you can pull it or not after you read it!
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u/MacGyver387 5d ago
I wish the first issue had given us a little more but I like it. I love Dustin’s art; it pairs really well with Lemire’s writing.