REVIEW: Start Again #1

Jamie Me, twitter superstar and independent comic supporter is back on the shelf, with his new book Start Again, which simply put, is a story of when boy meets girl and things get complicated.

Very complicated.

Ajay Verma is the main lead of the story; we catch up with him as things start to go wrong. There is a chance encounter, and awkward conversation that leads to a climax of sorts. From there we head into ramification city as actions taken do not go unnoticed, in a very clever nuanced version of the internet and the beast that is social media.

Creator Jamie writes in a fun and well observed manner. The dialogue used throughout is probably the thing that makes the book as enjoyable. Character interactions seem real rather than clichÃ©d, which add to the realism of the book, despite the overlay of powers. The fact that the book ends as it starts, is a clever trick to give the story some momentum.

Toni Doya provides the art, including the inks which at times is down and dirty, but in a good way. There is an unapologetic feel to the panels, including the nakedness and sex elements, the latter being handled in a mature way. This is an important aspect to the art as too often sex can dilute a story especially with a certain type of reader whose attention may get waylaid by the flesh on show. Panel structure for the most part, is pretty standard, with very little deviations. This means that when you do see them, the falling aspect for example, they work much better. Less is seemingly more. Colourist Sean Callahan gives the world a lived in grimy look that suits the tone of the book. Jamie would probably kill me if I didn“t mention the letterer, who is Jamie himself. It“s safe to say that Jamie is a talented letterer whose use of different emphasis works well throughout the book.

Start Again is a very strong book, with all involved clearly on the same page with the vibe and the intent of the story and deserves to be read.

To hear more about Jamie check out #ComicBookHour for some very interesting Q&A sessions with comic creators, reader and even a couple of Crusaders.

Writing ”“ 5 Stars
Art -4 Stars
Colors ”“ 4 Stars
Letters ”“ 5 Stars

[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]

Written and lettered by Jamie Me
Art by Toni Doya
Colours by Sean Callahan

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