A review by loop
Dark Souls Vol. 1: The Breath of Andolus by George Mann
2.0
Okay attempt at a Dark Souls comic.
Let's get one thing out of the way right off the bat: this is not canon. The quicker you get over the fact that this isn't in continuity with the games, the quicker you can enjoy it. The story may bug out some lore purists, especially concerning certain characters from the games. However, the writer did satisfactorily convey some of the themes from the games, such as undeath and the accompanying memory loss. and the concept of cycles that was introduced in Dark Souls 2.
The art is a mixed bag. While the book is well drawn in a traditional sense, it feels as though the artist isn't used to drawing comics. The action felt stiff and awkward, movements didn't flow well from one panel to the next, and the attacks felt unimpactful and lacking momentum. Sometimes it was hard to tell if a character was attacking or just holding up their arm, due to the lack of motion lines or other indicators of velocity and direction. At times, proportions were also abnormal. All that aside, Alan Quah does a great job at depicting each of the locations and characters. While he did not have enough time in each issue to elaborate on each area, he managed to make each one feel distinctly Dark Souls. He really needs to come up with some better weapon designs though (does every single sword really need to have a crystal in the middle of the hilt?).
As far as the coloring is concerned, the team does a decent job for the most part. They create a good sense of atmosphere, but I couldn't help but feel like they could've used heavier inks and/or darker colors. It ends up feeling very muddy and inexpressive.
Overall, this book is just okay. Don't expect a great comic, and don't expect good fanservice. I could only recommend this to both big fans of the games and big fans of comics. Hopefully volume 2 will expand on the decent foundation laid out in this first trade.
Let's get one thing out of the way right off the bat: this is not canon. The quicker you get over the fact that this isn't in continuity with the games, the quicker you can enjoy it. The story may bug out some lore purists, especially concerning certain characters from the games. However, the writer did satisfactorily convey some of the themes from the games, such as undeath and the accompanying memory loss. and the concept of cycles that was introduced in Dark Souls 2.
The art is a mixed bag. While the book is well drawn in a traditional sense, it feels as though the artist isn't used to drawing comics. The action felt stiff and awkward, movements didn't flow well from one panel to the next, and the attacks felt unimpactful and lacking momentum. Sometimes it was hard to tell if a character was attacking or just holding up their arm, due to the lack of motion lines or other indicators of velocity and direction. At times, proportions were also abnormal. All that aside, Alan Quah does a great job at depicting each of the locations and characters. While he did not have enough time in each issue to elaborate on each area, he managed to make each one feel distinctly Dark Souls. He really needs to come up with some better weapon designs though (does every single sword really need to have a crystal in the middle of the hilt?).
As far as the coloring is concerned, the team does a decent job for the most part. They create a good sense of atmosphere, but I couldn't help but feel like they could've used heavier inks and/or darker colors. It ends up feeling very muddy and inexpressive.
Overall, this book is just okay. Don't expect a great comic, and don't expect good fanservice. I could only recommend this to both big fans of the games and big fans of comics. Hopefully volume 2 will expand on the decent foundation laid out in this first trade.