Read our advance review of Bear Pirate Viking Queen #1 from Image Comics, written by Sean Lewis with art by Jonathan Marks Barravecchia.
We reviewed the book on the Stack podcast. But in the interest of highlighting more about the title, here’s a summary of the conversation with our thoughts. And if you prefer the longer audio version, that’s below as well!
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Bear Pirate Viking Queen #1 Review:
In the first of three issues of this series, we’re meeting pretty much all the characters of the title. There’s a bear. There’s a pirate. And of course a Viking, and a Queen. It’s wild, it’s bloody, it’s violent, and as our reviewers explained, it’s a work of art.
“[This is] absolutely wild buck,” said host Alex Zalben. He compared Barravecchia’s art to Dave McKean Vertigo covers, and though he noted “Sean Lewis is one of our favorite writers here… The story is not the point. This feels like an epic ode to the sea, tone poem type thing that you’re living in. You’re just following along with the art, because it’s lovely to look at. I can’t wait to pick up this one physically in stores, because this is going to be a great book to own.”
Justin Tyler agreed, adding, “I love that the art is so fantastic, epic scale. There’s a storm at one point that feels real. It feels like I’m in a storm. And that’s a very it’s hard to do, [a] widescreen type of storm coming across a vast space in a comic book… It’s amazingly done.”
He also shouted out the disparity between the “high art” and the tone of the book, which is purposefully more base and crass to provide a dichotomy between the two. “That high, low, big epic visuals with regular guys speaking like regular [people]… It really plays in this book.”
“Definitely pick this up,” Zalben said. “Go to your comic shop, order this one. You’re going to want to have it on your bookshelf.”
Bear Pirate Viking Queen #1 hits stores on May 1, 2024 from Image Comics.
Bear Pirate Viking Queen #1 Official Synopsis:
From SEAN LEWIS (KING SPAWN) comes a blood-splattered story of conquest. Bears. Pirates. Vikings. And Queens—all battling for their claim to determine what the world will become.
Rendered in stunning watercolor by artist JONATHAN MARKS BARRAVECCHIA, it’s a gorgeous story of the blood spilled to make countries. And what’s cooler than bears, pirates, vikings, and queens???
With 72 stunning pages, it’s sure to be one of the most beautiful and thought-provoking books of the year.
