Daniel Warren Johnson is a Chicago-based comic book writer, artist, and illustrator. He's worked on titles for most major publishers, including Marvel, DC, Dark Horse, and Image. His current series with Skybound/Image Comics is EXTREMITY, a sci-fi/fantasy title he is writing and drawing, and continues to update his webcomic Space-Mullet in his spare time.
Daniel Warren Johnson just can’t help himself — dude always brings the heart and this is no exception. Sam and Duncan are two parents who will burn the world down to get their daughter Penny back, and that compelling family dynamic is wrapped inside wild worldbuilding that runs on the rule of cool that’s a blend of action, fantasy, and sci-fi staples yet somehow all fits together. The characters are fantastic, Brio the toad instantly became one of my favorite new characters , and the DWJ/Rossmo art combo is a dream team pairing. Both artists bring this expressive, dynamic figure work with bold ink styles that are so compatible it reads as one homogeneous whole that’s just genuinely impressive. A really fun read with way more emotional punch than you expect going in.
The core idea is interesting — the exploration of the subconscious and dream world, and what each character represents and how they can help us. But the story itself felt lacking to me; many pages were about the endless war, and there wasn’t much real progress. For some reason, I also had the feeling that I’ve seen something similar before — I mean the “normal” characters suddenly thrown into a child’s world. Luckily, it’s not overly long and it does feel complete, it just didn’t offer as much as I had hoped
When some of the good guys turn bad, and some of the bad guys turn good, it's hard to discern whether the problem one aims to solve is truly the most critical obstacle of the moment. In THE MOON IS FOLLOWING US v2, Duncan and Samantha push forward with changed expectations.
This second and concluding trade collection posits a modest shift in the story's conflict conjecture: The nightmares that plague Penny's mind are problematic, but they aren't the problem. Indeed, a child's mental health is a fragmented fractal of their parent's mental health. And if Samantha must conquer her own emotional pain (to free her daughter), then so too must Duncan. But it's not that easy. It never is. Breaking free from the lethargy and the trauma that shackle themselves to one's overvalued sense of self means one must speak openly and honestly about the harm that's been done. Will Sam and Dun do the right thing? For their daughter's sake? For their own?
THE MOON IS FOLLOWING US v2 expands the story's fantastical, maniacal worldbuilding to include a massive crab tank, a battle-tested spider-person-thing, a rhinoceros unicorn, and a papercraft ogre. The book also shifts and twists the story such that Sam and Dun, whereupon finding themselves betrayed by the old magician, Tash, subsequently ally themselves with a handful of Penny's nightmares. The dreams and hopes died horrid deaths on the battlefield, but the nightmares are tough as nails, and it's the nightmares who survive long enough to push the hero characters on toward greater success.
In the current volume, characters' thematic journeys pivot from the emotionally wrought to the downright traumatic. Sam makes good on breaking down the generational angst she pulled from her mother (and thus may have passed down to her own daughter). Dun is another matter entirely, and the creative team wields a clever and effective array of lighting, coloring, and perspective to engender the terror, shame, and uncertainty that tends to follow traumatized children into their adulthood. Dun doesn't warm to confronting his pain in the same way Sam does, and he's willing to bear the consequences as a result.
Readers who harbor an erstwhile affection for DWJ's dramatic sound effects and inlaid text, or perhaps his increasingly dynamic application of page composition to facilitate story pace and direction, will find numerous things to enjoy about this book. Overall, THE MOON IS FOLLOWING US v2 is an entertaining read. The story's visually chaotic character designs and broad lack of background and environmental context contribute to the book's engaging, but not memorable, action. But the book's artistic and technical uniqueness likely surpass its attempt at storytelling originality.
Wait, WHAT?! Okay, I'll admit that I was losing interest in this series by the last couple issues in Volume 1, but I really wanted to give this one a chance (because I love DWJ). Maybe I'm just completely burned out on comic books these days (quite likely), but this really didn't work for me.
There is so much heart here, but it felt drowned out by the nonstop, neverending battle scenes. It feels like trying to have a heartfelt conversation with someone while you're standing in front of an amp at a black metal concert. There's some HEAVY stuff in here, but it never gets the chance to breathe before you're bombarded with more battle scenes. And then it just kinda ends... MUCH too abruptly, in my opinion. The art is spectacular, but dizzying. I usually adore a technicolor dream explosion, but I did feel utterly overwhelmed by it tonight. Overwhelmed by the art, and underwhelmed by everything else.
Do you like stories about family, fantasy, and stuff that pulls at your heart?
Than I suggest giving both volumes a try (I've read both, but this is fresher in my mind).
Sam and Duncan feel more real to many than some parents whom I've read in fantasy stories like this. They're not perfect. They're not perfect parents either, and that realization becomes part of the story of rescuing, Penny their daughter.
BTW I really enjoyed Penny's time in this volume. Much more than I expected for a story that begins as two parents trying to save their daughter locked in a coma/dream/fantasy world.
With their backs against the wall, Duncan and Sam turn to unlikely allies to combat the beings that haunt their daughter. Trauma from their past hunts them, and a harrowing moon hangs high over their quest.
Damn it am I gonna cry every time something happens to dads in media now!? Ugh! The other golden Cascade that haunts him made my skin crawl, and him facing his demons is a lesson to those who never open up to those they should trust. You shouldn't have to carry your burden alone, but like he said, the admission of its existence makes it real.
Is it hokey/cheesy to have a happier ending than expected? Where people are saved? Sure. But it can work. I love a "magical girl" fights back evil bit in comics/manga. I do feel there was a bit more to mine from the Duncan plot, but it'll do. My heart just breaks for the man. Penny finally got to be a little more of a character at the end here. DWJ seems to always tap into that emotional devastation of parents and kids, and that really works if you identify with it.
Moon was another excellent offering from DWJ and co, even if I have nitpicks with plot elements (they wrapped up the Sam Cascade dynamic rather quick). One of these days, DWJ won't write something that'll tug at your heartstrings, but I don't know if it'll be the same.
This was so awesome. I really enjoy when writers get to do their own stuff, this is so much better then all the transformer volumes he has written. I have read at least three volumes and they dont even compare.
The art is creative and amazing (❤️ the Pennycorn) the writing was splendid. There was even a little homage to ‘do a powerbomb’.
DWJ crafts another masterful story full of emotions beats, thought provoking dialog, and shows people struggling with trauma. The protagonists hold onto hope in hopeless situations. At the very end we see a unforeseen hero.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
What are you willing to do for your family? This book answers that for this family is such an epic way full of action and characters and heart. Well crafted and drawn, this was an adventure. DWJ cannot miss.
A gut punch of a conclusion. This story if intergenerational trauma and how far a parent will go to protect their child really cued up the tears for me.