REVIEW: NITNB: Watson and Holmes

4.18/5.0 Stars
Rating if the Book Were a Movie: R

Creative Team 

Created by: Brandon Perlow, Paul Mendoza
Writer: Karl Bollers
Artists: Rick Leonardi, Larry Stroman, Paul Mendoza, Guru FX, Archie Van Buren, Jay David Ramos
Letters: Taylor Esposito, Dave Lanphear, Nicole McDonnell, Wilson Ramos JR 
Cover: Khary Randolph, Walter Pereyra
Editor: Justin F. Gabrie
Publisher: Fabrice Sapolsky, Fairsquare Comics

Ratings 

Story: 4.4
Interior Artwork: 4.3
Cover Artwork: 4.2
Dialogue: 4.2
Mechanics: 4.0
Editing: 4.0

About the Book:

This wonderful story is a very modern take on the Holmes and Watson duo.  Set in the current time period. We meet Holmes and Watson as they learn from each other on the first case they work together

Reviewer’s Notes:

The first thing that caught my eye with this book was the cover art.  It is Holmes and Watson, but not as everyone knows them to be.  Not only does the cover show a time period change but a race change.  I think that it is a wonderfully fresh take on a series that is over 100 years old.

Going with the “Noir” theme that the title implies just on the cover alone, I could also see this becoming a movie worth watching and or a poster on the wall!

The interior art in the case of this story actually surpasses the cover a little bit. The attention to detail highlighted as the story progresses, enhances the story immensely. The artwork was done by a few people but the style is consistent throughout the book and is visually stimulating.  I found myself looking at each panel and just enjoying the detail as I read the story.

The story in this book is made up of several chapters, all starting with the very first clandestine meeting between Holmes and Watson, as the story progresses you as the reader learn about each character individually.  All the while it has an overlay from Watson’s point of view about what he was thinking at the time of the meeting.

I have been a Sherlock Holmes fan for a very long time. I found the race and culture bend that this story has is a wonderful addition to Sherlock Holmes and the stories associated with him.  It is a clear and fresh point of view that hits all the boxes of how Sherlock Holmes should be. The only thing that is missing in this story, which is minor in my opinion, is that he doesn’t play an instrument.  Now that could change in later stories, but I found it absent in this one.

This is possibly one of the best Sherlock Holmes stories that I have read in a long time. I picked up the book and lost track of time. Any story that can do that is definitely one that is worth having in your collection and worth following to see where it goes further.  I look forward to the next book!

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May the historical documents of the imagination always inspire! Thanks for reading!