Another week, another Real Mainstream. This week we have another tribal affair with Full Circle (albeit spelt as Cirkle) in the title (see last weeks column). The similarities end there really as they are 2 very different comics. Each with very different facets to recommend them and Full Cirkle is very much a darker comic.
Title: Full Cirkle
Publisher: Full Circle
Writer: Simon Reed
Artists: Simon Bisley
Relevant Websites: http://www.fcp.cc – the Publisher’s website – a very well laid out, well designed and easy to navigate site. http://www.simonbisleyonline.com/ - the artists website, featuring lots of information about Simon Bisley.
Issues read: 1 and 2
Summary: In an environment of warring tribes, Ashen, the new leader of the Phoenix tribe has a major part to play in the prophecy that states that a leader of the tribe will again restore balance to the various factions.
Presentation: Excellent presentation throughout. It is full colour with a painted cover, presented in standard comic size and a glossy or matt cover. Top paper quality and a nice smell.
Be careful that you do not get 2 copies of the same comic when buying, though. They have gone for that sneaky trick of having multiple covers and, sure the variants are all examples of lush Simon Bisley work, but it’s a little disappointing that they have done this. This comic is good enough to do well on it’s own merits and should not need to trick people into buying the same comic twice.
Where to buy it: Some comic stores may stock it, although I haven’t yet seen it. You should be able to request that your retailer get it for you, even if they do not stock it. In addition, you can buy online from http://www.reedcomics.com/.
My Comments: With Simon Bisley providing the artwork for this excellent comic, I do not see how it could fail. He is such a crowd pleaser that the writing could be complete shite and this could still do well.
It is lucky then, that the writing isn’t complete shite. Far from it, in fact. It is a little complicated and took me a couple of reads to take it all in, but this shows the depth and development of ideas in the comic. It is a compelling storyline and draws you in early on and Reed is a very good writer.
I think he is not quite at the full height of his powers as a writer. There’s a couple of lines of dialogue that seemed a little bit cheesy to me and one or two ideas that struck me as somewhat clichéd, but these are rare moments and overall the writing is of excellent quality.
This writing is complimented by the lush visuals from Simon Bisley, which are without par in the comics world of today.
As you would expect, the artwork here is of faultless quality and again justifies Bisley’s popularity as an artist. Stylised and beautiful artwork of women with huge jubblies, weird characters with lots of spiky bits and a massive sword. Vintage Bisley stuff.
This is a great example of an independent comic and one I recommend to all.
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