REVIEW: Alligator Loki #1

This was such a wild ride! The first time I ever heard of Alligator Loki was watching the Disney+ show, where he appeared for a couple of episodes. It’s a funny story and considering that the Marvel heroes exist in a multiverse of possibilities, an alligator version of Loki is not so far off that it could not be a reasonable variant for the God of lies. Yet, I had no idea that a comic about an alligator being Loki would be so fun! This comic is completely silent, minus the very well-executed sound fx texts here and there. It includes all your favorite heroes in a myriad of wacky situations starred by Alligator Loki. The color work of Pete Pantazis is fantastic, and the art by Bob Quinn is very whimsical.

I enjoyed this comic very much, right from the get-go the art and coloring remind me very much of the illustration work from the Skottie Young classic, I Hate Fairyland. Interestingly enough, I must not be the only one who thinks of this since Skottie is actually one of the cover artists on this book, as well as Bob Quinn having made a couple of covers for the I Hate Fairyland comics. If you know me, then you know that I love Skottie Young and IHF so right from page one, I was already digging this book. Reading the first few pages, I realized that this was an all-silent comic, and I instantly became enamored with it, because it is easy to read, fun to look at, and features several short stories about the different wacky antics of an alligator God. It’s really a fun book. I think this would definitely be one of those books you buy your children if you want to start them on the path to being a comic fan. Because it’s completely silent, minus the awesomely stylized sound fx’s texts here and there, I think this would be a great book for children who already talk but don’t necessarily know how to read. It’s fun to look at, and following the different stories is super easy because the panel layouts are literally perfect. There is one short story where you have to read it manga style, but the way Alligator Loki is flying leads your eye to read it the right way, and that’s just a genius way to use panel layouts, and action to tell your story.

There is something magnificent when you have a book so well written, that it literally does not need words to express a story. When you have these types of books in your hands, it is a feast for your eyes to admire the wonderful art, and the art here is amazing. Every ink stroke and every splotch of color is perfectly placed to give you a fun time. It is vibrant, it is colorful, it is childish in the best of ways, it is a delight to read through. I also really love how it’s structured as small 3-5 page stories all with their own title and theme, but they also all intertwine to create a bigger narrative. There is something just wonderful about it. This book would read great as a webcomic because each page could be a daily or weekly entry and literally each page basically is a stand-alone page that tells a mini story within the bigger short story within the bigger story of the book. It’s honestly perfect.

I don’t know what else to tell you other than you should 100% have this book as part of your collection. I don’t personally like Thor as a hero that much, but Loki on the other hand is witty, sneaky, an antihero and in the movies is just a sexy guy! His alligator form is simply adorable and just so cute to look at. The character designs in this book are also very nice, Thor himself isn’t necessarily Chris Hemsworth with all the muscles and no brains from the movies, instead, he’s just a chill guy who is constantly face-timing Jane to show him that he found Alligator Loki and is taking care of his reptile brother.

The backgrounds are also stunningly beautiful, particularly in the stories where Alligator Loki is in the swamp. The story called “God of the (Butterf)lies” is just amazing. The swamp is painted in what looks like a watercolor technique and the beautifully colorful butterflies just look stunning against these green and lush backdrops. Another interesting thing in this book is that the villains aren’t always the villains. In one of the stories (“Zoo Break”) we visit a zoo and find out that Alligator Loki is on time out in one of the enclosures, but first, we see several of our would-be villains like Rhino, Felicia Hardy aka Black Cat, Kraven the Hunter, and even the green caped metal God himself, Doctor Doom, just enjoying themselves looking at the different animals in the zoo. It’s really just wholesome to see this sort of book and know that in some universe heroes, villains and alligators are just having a nice time at the zoo together.

I’ve mentioned the sound fx lettering a couple of times, and I simply could not finish this review without talking a little bit about them. The reason I enjoy them very much is because it is clear that they were all done by the artist Bob Quinn themselves, and thus they fit perfectly with the style of the rest of the art and are just as creative as every other illustration in this book. I love to see that, it’s so refreshing to see an artist take care of their sound fxs and make sure that they are ingrained into the art, and follow their same art style instead of being placed later by a letterer with a vector program that makes it look like a sticker. I just love to see that honestly. I know it’s not always possible due to the insane deadlines artists working at Marvel face, but still, when you get a book like this and the artists and colorists took their time to add those little details in there, it just comes off as a labor of love.

This book is perfect in so many ways! I loved every second of it. Do not dilly dally and take a bite out of this comic as soon as you can get your little alligator claws on it.

Writing: 5 Stars
Art: 5 Stars
Colors: 5 Stars

Overall: 5 Stars

Written by: Alyssa Wong
Art by: Bob Quinn
Colors by: Pete Pantazis
Cover art by: Bob Quinn & Pete Pantazis
Varian Covers by: Doaly & Skottie Young

Published by Marvel Comics

Reviewed by Antonio “Mabs”