Comic Review: Echolands #1

Image Comics

Writers: J.H. Williams III & Haden Blackman

Art: J.H. Williams III

Colors: Dave Stewart

Letters: Rodd Klein

As I’m sure I’ve made clear in my Promethea review, I love myself some crazy paneling filled with stunning artwork. Pair that up with a fantastical worldbuilding and you have me sold on a comic book. Echolands is easily the book I’ve been anticipating the most for this year and it’s finally here!

Right off the bat, on the cover, one can deduce this is a comic book working on classical fairy tales, specially Red Riding Hood fable. This suspicion is quickly encouraged on the first page of the story where our main character, Hope, briefly sums up her background and it sort of fits the tale. Except… she didn’t get lost while on her way to visit grandma, she fell into “the Red” and found herself in a changing town, where there are quirky characters all around. A place ruled by a man dubbed as The Wizard, whose real name, we later find out, is Teros Demond. Hope stole a gem from the Wizard and now her, and her friends, are on the run from his men.

I loved how this first chapter just dives into the story. A fair paced and mostly expositional first issue is textbook so it’s usually something I look forward to. Slowly getting to know the protagonist and the world around them. The writer team drove past that for Echolands. We jump right into action as Hope is running from the Wizard’s police and meets up with her friends. The city is organically presented to us as she runs into a wall that “wasn’t there last week”. It was incredibly refreshing having this amazing new world just thrown at me. That being said, the story progresses quite little, once we stop to think about it, but the execution made it worth the wait for the next issue.

J.H. Williams is an artistic genius and it’s hard to elaborate on that. I was excited for this comic due to his crazy panel structure but I forgot how alive he manages to make a comic book page feel. Around the third page Hope runs past a market and it’s exhilarating to gaze upon the diversity of character designs present in a passing scene. In association with Williams’ artwork is veteran’s Dave Stewart colors which could only amount to success, as far as I’m concerned. The palette is saturated making the Wizard’s world feel oppressive and imposing which gives Hope’s colors a highlight as a beacon of light in a world in darkness.

Lettering is done by Rodd Klein and it’s also pretty cool. I love some sound effects and Klein most surely delivered on that. Doing so in such a manner that it doesn’t get in the way of the main artwork at all, which is to say, an outstanding work for a letterer.

I hyped this book hard and, boy oh boy, has my hype been worth it. Echolands delivers from issue one and it leaves the reader craving more. More of the story, the world, the art and everything surrounding it. I recommend this book, without a doubt.