Review: Lodger #1

Filling in sites like TripAdviser can be murder and in this new book from the Black Crown imprint from IDW, Lodger, this statement is more than a little true.

For three years, Ricky Toledo has been chasing the guy who broke her heart and murdered her family as he massacres his way through the US of A.Â Along the way shes will face the distrust of a whole world of people as her quarry begins to morph into something more for her….. an obsession!

The book is the newest venture by Stray Bullets creators David Lapham and Maria Lapham.Â For fans who love that series, you will know doubt have a fair expectation level already.Â For the rest of us, this could be seen as a new style of storytelling.Â The pair contribute to the writing of the book, and with any writing tandem, it’s hard to see who is responsible for what.Â Judging as a whole then; I have to admit to being confused about the premise of the story.Â Key facts are written in such a meandering way that at times its, not really clear who the monologue belongs to or in fact the reason for Ricky’s travels.Â Maybe its me, maybe I have spent tooÂ much time in the normally straight forward world of superheros that I struggle with this type of writing.Â At times, the book feels like TV shows like The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair and Killing Eve; both shows have meandering elements that delay the conclusion and make it harder for the viewer to piece together the key parts.Â Don’t get me wrong, I want a book that has layers, but there as to be some sort of clue given to keep readers / viewers intrigued.Â The dialogue works in a odd way, adding to the confusion is the fact that Ricky isn’t that likeable, for example she could just say “no thanks” when offered ice cream that she was actually interested in.

David Lapham also handles the artistic chores in the book, delivering a black and white affair that gives the book an almost darker than dark feel.Â With the issues of murder, loss and obsession all in play, the Lapham’s are dealing with the shadowiest of all human emotions.Â Their is an almost cherubic look to a lot of the characters.Â Not being that familiar with Lapham’s work, is this a way to visually show that innocence has been lost?Â For a larger part the art does the job in helping convey the story, though like the writing, key parts could be made clearer, especially the last few panels.Â To go along with the standard Lapham cover, there is a Bill Sienkiewicz that matches the tone 0f the book brilliantly.

There is an ongoing debate going on at Castle CC regarding the continued use of 22 page comics over the the graphic novel model.Â Now, a realist may well say that there should be room in the market place for both.Â But with comic shops closing or moving onto the next trend and certain publishers effectively publishing movie adverts instead of comics, the fact is that graphics may well be the next evolutionary stage.Â If so, books like this would suit the graphic novel model, which would allow the reader to get the whole arc in one stop.Â As it is, the confusing elements on show may well deter people from picking up the second issue, from a pair of fantastic, if not niche, creators.

Writing – 3.5 Stars

Art – 3.5 Stars

[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]

Written by; David Lapham & Maria Lapham
Art by; David Lapham
Published by Black Crown via IDW

Author Profile

Johnny "The Machine" Hughes

I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow

Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network