REVIEW: Stray

Stray| Written and Illustrated by Eric Gay | Colored by Andy Poole | Cover Colorist: Ryan Lord 

Stray is a dark fantasy short story that follows Sole, a young girl who finds herself stranded in a  foreign world after discovering a doorway between dimensions. 

An insightful traveler with wisdom and curiosity crosses paths with a mystical girl possessing incredible power to creates a thought-provoking mystery that you can’t put down. 

Stray is a dark fantasy story that you don’t want to miss! It’s a tale that spans across dimensions told in a  fantastical way. I was captivated as soon as I saw the cover and the story held up wonderfully! Seriously  though, the cover is perfect for this book. Simple and elegant, yet it illustrates the story as doorway into  a different world.  

STORY 1- Star 

The story follows the traveler Tabitha, as she ventures through a forest known as The Dream. The Dream appears to be very much alive and a traveler’s destination manifests itself along their way.  Today, Tabitha’sjourney came to its first stop at a cave wherein she finds a mystical girl who they  determine to be named Sole. Stories are traded and mysteries will be uncovered in this immersive experience to a few new worlds. 

Gay built a great foundation for this story and I hope to see it continue. I see the possibility to expand  this issue’s storyline or create more one-off mysteries.  

ART 1 – Star 

The art is perfect for this story. It has all the character it needs to bring a fantasy world to life. Gay knew  what he was doing.  

A few of my last reviews were on trippy fantasy stories and I was always disappointed that they were  purely done in black and white. Trippy stories should be colorful and immersive. Straywas just that. 

DIALOGUE .75 – Star 

I thought the dialogue was perfect in so many parts of the story. It was introspective and enlightening. It  gave you a feel for who the characters were and the worlds they inhabit.  

I deducted points because at times scenes felt rushed. In those scenes the dialogue did the job Gay  needed it to do, but it could have done more. Though this happened briefly in only a couple of scenes, it  was noticeable because the rest of the story was very well done. 

EDITING 1- Star

I found no issues with the spelling or grammar. 

MECHANICS .75- Star 

The story was 48 pages and it covered a lot of ground. Showing its many dimensions, literally and  figuratively. I deducted points because as a reader I only know the surface level information for many  different happenings in the world of Stray. I would have liked to have a more definitive insight into the  lives of Tabitha or Sole, to really give me something to cling on to for the next part of Strays journey.  This did not take away from the story which is why I deducted the .25 from mechanics. 

CLOSING STATEMENT 

Read it.