REVIEW: Abyssal Albion #1

WRITER Thomas Campbell |ARTIST Wayne Lowden | LETTERER Ken Reynolds 

Abyssal Albion is a story following a sister and brother who are trying to navigate through a post-apocalyptic world. The world seems to be at least loosely based on fictional monsters created by H.P.  Love Craft. Due to the story having a creepy setting and some explicit language, I wouldn’t recommend this one for kiddos.  

STORY 

.75- Star 

The cover got me interested right away, one look, and I wanted to know what was going on. My excitement continued onto the first page because the story throws you into a weird, creepy world, and the protagonists are in immediate danger. However, when the story progressed, I never figured out what was going on. I remained interested, but there was no meat on the bone of this story. The only plot information offered in it was; the world wasn’t always this way, monsters and mysticism are trying to hurt them, and they are looking for someone named Camilla. I gave this book two reads because, during the first draft of my review, I felt like I was harsh. Only having given it a .5 story rating, I  knew it needed another chance. After my second take, I still feel the same way about the plot, though I  did raise my rating. I did so because I was truly immersed in this books’ world, and I think it leaves issue two in a great spot to be really entertaining. 

ART 

.75- Star 

I thought the cover was excellent. It sucked me right in. I like how the title and the creator’s names were not symmetric, giving the reader a feel for the world before they even start reading.  

I felt Lowden’s art drove this story. It was the perfect amount of creepy and trippy to immerse me into the world and help tell this story. 

This is a black and white book. I am a fan of black and white books because they can set the tone for a  story, though at times, in this one, it leaves pages looking a little empty.  

DIALOGUE 

.5- Star 

I have listed the dialogue at .5 stars because I needed more from the story, like the protagonists’ names. We never got them. Now, I don’t think it is always an issue when names of characters aren’t given, but since there was little else done to develop the characters or the story, it stuck out in retrospect. I wanted something to get me invested in the characters or the story other than the scary monsters and the world that they are in. We didn’t get that in issue 1.  

EDITING 

1- Star 

This book was very well edited. I found no issues with spelling, grammar, or the lettering.

MECHANICS 

.75- Star 

In my opinion, this book could have really benefited from color. It could have helped fill the void of those empty looking pages, and most of all, it would have highlighted the coolest part of the book. The weird, creepy world that it is set in. Being in black and white does make this book have a creepy feel, but colors can do that as well. Colors would have also contributed to the mysticism and the spells portrayed in the story. 

The story moves really fast, and there is a lack of context as to what is going on the whole time. It’s possible that if I had previously ready H.P Lovecraft’s work, I would have caught on to more, but having only limited knowledge of his work, I would have missed it. That being said, I followed the story with ease. I wanted to continue reading when I finished it. 

CLOSING STATEMENT 

Overall, I see promise in this story. Starting a book and creating the world in it might be the hardest part  of writing any story, and the creators should feel accomplished because they truly did that. Although I  felt this story lacked some “meat”, the end pages do give you something to get excited for. It seems like  the creators are just warming up, and I want to see what happens in issue two.