To my delight, back in 2005 I discovered one of my favorite comic writers, Brian Augustyn, would be writing a comic entitled Beowulf: Gods and Monsters for the newly launched Speakeasy Comics. At that point, without hesitation I would have said that Augustyn was my favorite comic writer. Beyond working on some great titles at DC Comics, he also wrote some of my favorite books, Crimson and Out There.
So, I enthusiastically bought the first issue and waited . . . sometimes up to four months in between issues. But the first issue had me convinced the wait was worth it. The story was set in modern day. Beowulf was an immortal who had died in his fight against the Wyrm only to be reborn. He was to help guide others with powerful abilities towards noble ends.
What I Didn't Like
What I Liked
It's getting harder and harder to find this series. (Amazon and eBay have issues that appear every so often). Fans of Beowulf really should check this series out, though. It's not perfect by any means, but it has a tremendous heart and great story at its core.
Rating: 3/5 (I Liked It)
So, I enthusiastically bought the first issue and waited . . . sometimes up to four months in between issues. But the first issue had me convinced the wait was worth it. The story was set in modern day. Beowulf was an immortal who had died in his fight against the Wyrm only to be reborn. He was to help guide others with powerful abilities towards noble ends.
What I Didn't Like
- The art drastically changes right in the middle of the six-issue series. While both Dub (1-3) and Attila Adorjany (4-6 and 7), are solid artists, the shift completely changes the story.
- Portions of the dialogue are clunky.
- The later half of the story feels very rushed (almost as if Augustyn knew Speakeasy was going under).
- For such a short book, there was far too many subplots and secondary characters introduced.
- That after the initial six-issue run, a seventh issue was released without Augustyn, and this issue's story was never completed.
What I Liked
- Dub's artwork in the series captured the tone of the story very well.
- (I liked the brief appearence of the phenomenal Jeff Lemire's artwork in the seven issue.)
- Beowulf's overall character was effectively captured. After 1400 years of life, this is pretty much how I'd imagine the legendary character.
- Augustyn has a great story that he's telling. Unfortunately, the art work shift, and the rushed storyline damage the presentation. But I like the idea of Beowulf being a sort of shepherd to the gifted people of humanity.
- It was great seeing the wyrm that had killed Beowulf come back for a second round.
It's getting harder and harder to find this series. (Amazon and eBay have issues that appear every so often). Fans of Beowulf really should check this series out, though. It's not perfect by any means, but it has a tremendous heart and great story at its core.
Rating: 3/5 (I Liked It)
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