Angel Catbird comes from the minds of Lauded novelist Margaret Atwood and acclaimed artist Johnnie Christmas and is published by Dark Horse Comics. Margaret Atwood is perhaps best known for her work in the literary world, her novel The Blind Assassin was even named one of Time magazine’s 100 best English-language novels. She is the winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award and also the Prince of Asturias Award for Literature. She has been shortlisted for the Booker Prize five times, winning once, and has been a finalist for the Governor General’s Award winning twice. Johnnie Christmas is the creator/writer/artist of FIREBUG published in ISLAND Magazine. He is also the co-creator and artist of the Image Comics series SHELTERED and PISCES from Image/Shadowline. Both Atwood and Christmas are a powerhouse team that has come together to bring the reader a truly original graphic novel experience.
Angel Catbird is the heroic tale of young genetic engineer Strig Feleedus who on a dark night is accidentally mutated by his own experiment and merges with the DNA of a cat and an owl. The storyline of angel Catbird itself is not terrible original in its Superhero origin story but it makes up for this in its truly and refreshingly original hero. The writing done by Margaret Atwood is delightfully light and witty, the words are captioned in word balloons and convey the story very nicely. Its old school but in the best possibly way. It was also enjoyable how the author inserted small PSA’s regarding animals that talked about stats and scenarios regarding animals the reader may not have known.
The artwork done by Johnnie Christmas is very well done and fits the tone of the story and writing very well. The art has a very retro tone to it that transported me to the golden age of pulp comics like Flesh Gordon. The color was also done well, turning what could have been tonally a horror story into a fun and campy adventure. Many artists struggle showing emotion in the characters they draw but Johnnie Christmas was able to emote and show off just what the characters are feeling from scene to scene. There is one particular frame where he showcases the main character right after he transforms into Angel Catbird the scene is brief but it makes the reader feel just what Angel Catbird is going through and how he must feel at that moment.
Overall Angel Catbird is a very fun graphic novel that takes the reader on a fun, informative and campy adventure. It has good writing and good artwork. The ViralHare gives this 5 out of 5 hops
