Review: Chibi Essence #1 (Baltimore Comic-con Exclusive)

So at the latest Baltimore Comic-Con, I had the pleasure of meeting the creative team of a Web-Comic calledÂ Chibi Essence.Â Normally that is not that big of a deal, but the thing that drew my eye to their booth was they have a printed comic!Â Chibi has been around for a while, but this is the first time I had heard of them, so I decided to dig further.

-300 years ago, Japan was on a crash course with total deforestation, that was turning it into a wasteland.Â That is until Mother Nature, steps in an creates the Chibi, 12 small spiritual creatures whose main purpose is to teach humans how to live in harmony with nature.

The Chibi succeed at first in smaller human communities but as the human village grow in size, so do the people, basically overwhelming the Chibi.Â So, Mother Nature creates more Chibi, each with a specific purpose related to the cultivation of nature. For instance there are Chibi for; Wood, Water, fire,coal, etc, bringing the total number of Chibi to 99.Â Though Jean Binh Valentine doesn’t give an explanation for each and everyone, but at least finally humans with the help of the Chibi were able to find a balance..at least until the civil wars started tearing country apart.Â What happens to the Chibi Â I guess we will have to tune issue #2 to find out.

Â At first glance, Chibi Essence #1 is cute little story about little forest creatures, but as the narrative progresses, I found it to be an excellent medium that is in tune with the current growing momentum around the world for reforestation.

The art for the Chibi Essence #1 (Baltimore Comic-con Exclusive), was equal parts beautiful and effective.Â Drawn by Maggie Z and colored by Brandon Coles, the simplified panels captured the Chibi’s innocent yet simple existence. At the Baltimore Comic-Con Chibi Essence #1 actually had 2 covers, both were drawn by Jessica Van Braun,Â and had the same cover art, though one was a foil type deal, and both are hauntingly beautiful.

Some of the panels are a little non-linear but it still garners 4.5 out of 5 stars. Chibi Essence comics are also available in Spanish, Vietnamese, German, and French.Â There is also a Chibi Muerte project that has been out there that really looks interesting as well.Â How far can Chibi Essence go? That depends on the energy of creator Jean Binh Valentine.Â He already has put the energy into the merchandising for the Chibi like little figurines (some already sold out) and pillows. I could totally see it garnering interest in a cartoon, or a movie. So my suggestion is to give it a shot and get in on the ground level on this!

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