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cyanide_latte's review
emotional
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I backed one of Kathryn Calamia's Kickstarters for later issues in this story/world and did so at the level I was able to get the physical trade paperback of the first five issues' bind-up. I'm familiar with Calamia from her collaborative work with my friend, Phil Falco, and I've been curious about LFLD from how often it's been brought up in relation to the Haunting comics' campaigns. (There's a crossover between the two series and I hope they'll do a trade bind-up of that in the future as well.)
Superheroes have been a staple aspect of my life since early childhood, and indie pub superhero stories are something I've come to love and appreciate since the mid-to-late 2010s. There are so many interesting stories out there by independent creators and this one is no different! We follow Casey Ryder as she struggles with growing up with an absent father (who left the family to become the world's only superhero) and then discovering she's inherited his powerset and then some. Casey has a rather disparaging view of superheroes as a result, and wants to avoid becoming one, only to learn it isn't entirely that simple. She's forced to reconnect with her father, which seems to have a ripple effect on the plot as we learn he doesn't really know about his powers' origins, and there appears to be people looking to keep information from the Ryder family altogether.
The story has a lot of heart and good plot set up for the remainder, and I tore through it pretty quickly! My only real complaint has to do with a lot of the art and appearance of the comic. The art style is definitely not for me and I'm liable to gripe about that. The actual layout itself isn't terrible but a lot of the lettering, text boxes, kerning, etc. look clunky and awkward, and dialogue flow isn't always clear or easy to follow. I had to re-read multiple panels throughout this bind-up in order to get the correct flow of dialogue. But those things aside, I enjoyed this and hope to see the bind-up of the rest soon!
Superheroes have been a staple aspect of my life since early childhood, and indie pub superhero stories are something I've come to love and appreciate since the mid-to-late 2010s. There are so many interesting stories out there by independent creators and this one is no different! We follow Casey Ryder as she struggles with growing up with an absent father (who left the family to become the world's only superhero) and then discovering she's inherited his powerset and then some. Casey has a rather disparaging view of superheroes as a result, and wants to avoid becoming one, only to learn it isn't entirely that simple. She's forced to reconnect with her father, which seems to have a ripple effect on the plot as we learn he doesn't really know about his powers' origins, and there appears to be people looking to keep information from the Ryder family altogether.
The story has a lot of heart and good plot set up for the remainder, and I tore through it pretty quickly! My only real complaint has to do with a lot of the art and appearance of the comic. The art style is definitely not for me and I'm liable to gripe about that. The actual layout itself isn't terrible but a lot of the lettering, text boxes, kerning, etc. look clunky and awkward, and dialogue flow isn't always clear or easy to follow. I had to re-read multiple panels throughout this bind-up in order to get the correct flow of dialogue. But those things aside, I enjoyed this and hope to see the bind-up of the rest soon!
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