When I think of independent comics, I always go to the smaller yet successful publishers like Image, Dark Horse, and Aftershock. Good content can be found anywhere if you look hard enough and I have come across some real gems in unexpected places. One such place in the magical land of the internet, where web comics have found some moderate success for those wanting to share their craft with little to no expectation of making money. Fire Girl is one such project.
Drawn and written by Larry Spike Jarrell, Fire Girl is a comic based on the real life person Stephanie Sorenson, a volunteer firefighter in Florida who advocates Autism Awareness as a teacher and parent of a son on the autism spectrum. Her work for the progress of the community inspired Larry to create this story about a woman with control over fire to fight super villains and help people. The action is exciting and there is a clear, though undeveloped, relationship between Fire Girl and her nemesis Volt. Also, the character design and coloring (courtesy of Alethea Van Holland) of the other bad guy Pyroclast is pretty darn cool.
However, that is where my interest tapers off.
For a fun, amateur comic, this is pretty good stuff. Something you“d show your friends and they“d say “Wow, that“s awesome! You could totally sell that!”“ Problem is that the story is just so underdeveloped that a lasting comic would never be picked up by a publisher, and selling it on your own is difficult, expensive, and time-consuming. I saw a sneak peek at what is in store for the second issue and it looks promising, with the addition of a combustible canine companion and more of that dynamic action I liked from issue one, but without a story to put with it, I“m still skeptical about the direction it“s going in. Stephanie is credited as the writer though, so maybe things will improve with her input. Normally, with a new comic, you get some idea of back story or context, but with Fire Girl #1, it“s just immediate superhero action. Electricity versus fire, with some water effects thrown in for good measure, just don“t make a good plot by itself. It does showcase the Jarrell“s artistic chops though. The writing is just weak and the dialogue can be downright cringe-worthy. I wanna know who Fire Girl is and why she fights these enemies. Are they criminals? Or just psychotic? And what are the origins of their powers? If we had some answers, I wouldn“t be as critical, but the truth is that I want this to be successful because of the inspiration and premise of the comic. Unfortunately, it will not receive positive reception if we get one-dimensional characters fighting for no reason. It“s been done before. Give me something new and worth picking up. To paraphrase Field of Dreams, “If you build it, they will come.”“
I am all for self publishing and making the dream come true. I“m pursuing some things myself and I wish success comes to anyone willing to put in the effort as Larry Spike Jarrell has. Especially when part of the proceeds go toward improving the education of autistic kids. My advice? After this current fight scene that is building up to be multi-issue in length, the writer needs to spend real-time introducing the characters and their motivations. Bonus points if he incorporates an autistic character or element to draw in the audience he is most likely to appeal to. He did a quick bit with firefighters in the first issue, which was a nice touch, but I want to care about this comic. To draw a quick comparison, Lion Forge has a title called Catalyst Prime: Superb featuring a hero with Down Syndrome and they are very active with the National Down Syndrome Society for outreach and support. I“m not saying Fire Girl needs to be a pro-autism pamphlet disguised as a comic, but if I buy a book supporting a cause, I am clearly interested in said cause. Love is Love wouldn“t have done near as well if the collection of works inside have nothing to do with the Pulse shooting in Orlando or the LGBTQ community.
Overall, this comic has great potential. The artwork is far better than many web comics I“ve seen and even some published by big name titles (*cough* Squirrel Girl *cough*), but the writing has some catching up to do. With time and care, these characters can be molded into something worth a continuous read and I would be all for it. Right now it“s not (although the introduction of a dog sidekick has me intrigued). At the current suggested price point of five dollars, it“ll be a hard sell unless the writing game steps up. Still, I“m going to give Fire Girl a score bump up from an objective 2 or 2.5 stars because a) it is self-produced, b) it is based on an everyday hero, and c) it supports autism awareness. Warming up, 3 out of 5 Stars!
Author Profile
- Robert joined Comic Crusaders in 2016 as contributor, but has been an active online voice through social media for almost ten years. His hobbies include reading and collecting comics, attending theme parks, making music, and driving his wife insane. Deadpool and Nightcrawler are his two favorite superheroes, and while his preference is Marvel, he dabbles in every major and indie label in the comics community. He graduated from UTPB in 2013 with a BS in Mechanical Engineering and is currently seeking employment in that field. A southern boy at heart, he currently resides in the Midwest.
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