Maw #1

Maw #1

BOOM! Studios 2021

Written by Jude Ellison S. Doyle

Illustrated by A.L. Kaplan

Coloured by Fabiana Mascolo & Federica Mascolo

Lettered by Cardinal Rae

This series is rated Adults Only

DISCLAIMER: gore

What happens when one woman becomes the real monster society has always made her out to be? Dragged by her sister Wendy to a feminist retreat on the remote island of Angitia, Marion Angela Weber hopes to gain some perspective and empowerment... that isn't at the bottom of a bottle. But everything is horribly derailed after an assault on their first night there. The violent encounter awakens something in Marion she never imagined, triggering warped mutations in her body, and awakening a hunger she can't bring herself to name. When the townsfolk react with suspicion and violence, what unforgivable act will transform Marion into the very monster they've made her out to be?

So this was on my radar but I wasn’t one hundred percent sure about it but hey that didn’t stop me from reading this and discovering there is something about this that is absolutely terrifying. When things become all too real and veer towards true crime that is blended with something a little more that has a more universal appeal and makes it even more terrifying than you may realise.

I am such a fan of the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is exceedingly well rendered. The character development we see through the narration, the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how they act and react to the situations and circumstances which they encounter does a marvellous job in bringing these characters to life. The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages introducing us to the story, the characters and the world they live in we get caught up in the proceedings.

How we see this being structured and how the layers within the story emerge, grow and evolve does a magnificent job in showcasing some incredible storytelling chops. What I like about the layers is how we see them open up avenues to be explored and some will work within the main arc and others will swirl around it but they all add some great depth, dimension and complexity to the story. The way everything works together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward is achieved exceptionally well.

The interiors here are really rather quite spectacular. The linework is clean, crisp and sharp and how the varying weights and techniques are utilised to create the detail within the work that we see throughout the book really does a marvellous job in creating the mood, tone and feel of the book. How we see backgrounds utilised to enhance and expand the moments as well as how they work within the composition of the panels to bring out the depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkable eye for storytelling. The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work show a really solid eye for how colour works.

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This is an intriguing book and the more we see and the more we learn the more we come to realise that the opening is more misleading than we’d imagined. Nothing is quite what it seems and that becomes a huge part of the story’s appeal. With some amazing writing and solid interesting characterisation and these beautifully rendered interiors this is something you’ll never forget reading.