Arclight

by Brandon Graham, Marian Churchland (Artist)

A lady of the blood house has had her mind trapped in a strange alien body. Hiding on the outskirts of her kingdom until she learns that an alien monster pretending to be her taken her place. Brandom Graham (King City, Prophet, Island) and Marian Churchland (Beast) Bring you Sharp genderqueer knights, blood magic, death gods, astral projection, and a goose.

Collects Arclight #1-4.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Comic Book, LGBT, Fiction

128 pages, Paperback

First published March 22, 2017

About the author

Brandon Graham (born 1976) is an American comic book creator.

Born in Oregon, Graham grew up in Seattle, Washington, where he was a graffiti artist. He wrote and illustrated comic books for Antarctic Press and Radio Comix, but got his start drawing pornographic comics like Pillow Fight and Multiple Warheads (Warheads would go on to become its own comic published by Oni Press in 2007). In 1997, he moved to New York City where he found work with NBM Publishing and became a founding member of comics collective Meathaus. His book Escalator was published by Alternative Comics in January 2005, when he returned to Seattle. His book King City was published by Tokyopop in 2007 and was nominated for an Eisner Award. In May 2009 Graham announced that King City would continue publication at Image Comics and his Oni Press title Multiple Warheads would resume publication after a delay, this time in color. Also at Image he is the writer on Prophet, the return of a 1990s series, with the rotating roster of artists Giannis Milonogiannis, Farel Dalrymple, Simon Roy, and himself.

(Source: Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lady Kinga occupies the body of a monster, living in exile with her loyal knight, Arclight. Then someone turns up wearing her old body, using her former rank for her own purposes. Lady Kinga and Arclight need to return to the city to save the world. There’s a dead goose that becomes undead, and red; a palace is made of the bones of the ancestors of the Blood House.

Are you following? Me, neither. I like poetry comics, with elliptical stories, even wordless stories, but this one baffled me, I'll admit. So far, I might say, since it is a first volume, but glancing at other reviews it looks like people are split between incomprehensibility and loving living all the questions. I might also admit my reaction might be somewhat influenced by my also being baffled by Graham's Prophet, what I read of it. I liked the art by Churchland, and maybe especially the worldless painted chapter breaks. I think lovers of ethereal historical fantasy might love this; the art works for fantasy, clearly hand-painted, water-colored.

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better and easier to follow than Graham's Prophet, which I found incomprehensible. Still suffers from his lack of explanation of the alien concepts he introduces. Graham glances over plot points that would make the story come together better if he spent a page or two explaining what happened.


Received an advance copy from Image and Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

[Martu Castro Vallejo · Rating 4 out of 5]

http://inkyreviews.blogspot.com.ar/20...

I got my hands on this beauty, as I said, from Edelweiss+. I was just scrolling down through the selection of review copies and I saw this graphic novel. I'm not too sure of what caught my eye; If we're being honest, the cover is not that appealing. I guess it was the "fantasy" tag, cause I hadn't even read the premise, that lured me into downloading it. Oh, and the fact that I didn't have to request a copy to check it out also helped (thanks for that, btw). I'm so glad I did.

This was my first experience with graphic novels. For real. I've always wanted to check them out but never did for some reason. WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU, MARTINA? I read it sooo quickly, and loved it so much. I can't even begin to describe how thrilled I am to continue reading 'em. I owe it all to Arclight.

Let's dive into it

Story: I found it confusing at times. Had I read the summary from goodreads before jumping into it, maybe I would have understood it a bit more. But where's the fun in that? My ONLY issue with it, was that Lady's story was a bit disorienting... *Spoilers* the back and forth between Lady's mind in the alien's body and the Alien's mind in Lady's body confused me a lot at the beginning and made me think it was a memory of the past. *end of Spoilers* The idea or concept of the story was really good, I really enjoyed it. So, well done Brandon (I can call you Brandon, right?).

Characters: I understand, that you can't do much in 120 pages, but I felt that the characters lacked, well, character. I didn't really feel like any of them had personality, except for maybe Nowak (who was obnoxious but in a good way). In fact, I think the character with the best personality was Goose. Love that little guy, he definitely had a lot to say.

Artwork: HOLY MOTHER OF JESUS. The art is UN-FREAKING-BELIEVABLE. Dear, Marian Churchland, I'm your number 1 fan now. Keep the good stuff coming. Thank you.
The color palette, the "drawn" feel with the thin strokes, just the world design is amazing. 10/10.

Some good stuff:

-Genderqueer. I was pleasantly surprised by this. I think it's great to have characters who don't identify with either gender. This allows them to not be so stereotyped.
-Have I mentioned the artwork yet? Oh I have? Well, it's amazing.

Final Thoughts

I really really enjoyed it and has opened me the world of graphic novels. I definitely recommend it, specially since it's available free of charge (you need to have an Edelweiss+ account). Hope you check it out!

[Bogi Takács]

"BOGI, READ THAT COMIC WITH THE MAGICAL GENDERQUEER KNIGHTS"

I did. I'm not sure anymore who asked for this review, but it was more than one person. :)

Enjoy:

http://www.bogireadstheworld.com/comi...

[charlotte, · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rep: genderqueer mc, Black side characters, genderqueer side characters

CWs: magic requiring self harm

[Václav · Rating 4 out of 5]

(3,5 of 5 for the abandoned promise of fresh and exciting sci-fi/magic mashup wrapped up in mesmerizing art)
I ran across this some time ago, intrigued by the art of the cover. I waited until it will be completed, but there is the first flaw - it never will be. Arclight is part of "8house", Graham's comics project (with hosts) which binds together eight different worlds/kingdoms and their stories to one universe. Only one finished arc is Arclight, then there is one issue of Kiem and two of Yorris. And it's damn shame.
Arclight, named by lord Arclight, one of genderqueer (gender flux) nobles of their kingdom, who is devoted to their lady (leader person), who switched bodies with some other creature. How the world is different and mixed feels a bit "Moebius-ish", it's a mix of a desert landscape with some oases of life, blood magic, a bit of technology, different creatures and races, gender flux nobles Slavic/polish-like names of locations and mystic creatures. The story is interesting, but the weak ending feels like there should be more to it but it was rushed to an early finish. But the art - I liked it. Elegant, neat, with nice colouring. I would read more just for the art (especially of the characters, Churchland should do some fantasy saga with elves, because his gender flux nobles are tall, thin with sharp but elegant faces, radiating their "superiority" and both fragile elegance and strength and power. Just add the pointy ears.
Away from Arclight, the Kiem got me excited even more by the world. It's more technology-based, but there are things on the edge of "magic" and the main character is cool. And there is a taste of the connecting with the other worlds - they wage war on some space rock apparently with the Arclight's kingdom. And even their worlds are quite different, you can see the connections - the remote control of creatures (which you already could see in Arclight, but you didn't know and it's their bit different variant) and the premise with twins is both grim and fascinating.
8house is like some communistic project - like a fantastic megalomanic theme park, which was never really finished and it was closed a few weeks after it's opening and never opened its gates again. It's slowly decaying giant corpse, reminiscence of something which could be great but was killed by the incompetence of men.

[Johan Thilander]

Nja. För att ett sånt här disparat berättargrepp ska funka så måste det knytas ihop väldigt hårt mot slutet - vilket det inte görs i Arclight.
I övrigt en väldigt stilig bok med fina illustrationer och ett rätt intressant världsbygge.

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I want to read this again. One stretch next time.

Update: Yup, much clearer reading it at once :)

[Rodney · Rating 4 out of 5]

I honestly don't know how to review this. I hate plot (poet), so I loved it. Maybe you like things to, you know, happen, so you won't. But maybe you like wildly bizarre imagery for which no explanation is even attempted. Yep, that's my jam.

The art is breathtaking and the gender subversion is wholly fresh. Also my jam. One character is kind of a bundle of sticks in a robe. Love it.

Definitely up my alley, others may have to work a little to appreciate it. One of the strangest things I've ever read, and that's coming from someone who enjoys the l=a=n=g=u=a=g=e poets.

[Maia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not sure I can put into words the depths of, or reasons for, my love of this book. First off, it's illustrated by Marian Churchland, whom I have adored for years. If you don't follow Marian's sketch blog of wants, needs, worries and pastries than you should be. Marian's drawn objects have both a heft and a glimmer that grounds them in reality while also subtly glinting of magic. Secondly, Arclight features a cast of genderqueer knights, living blood creatures and death wizards, which are all very high on my list of favorite character types. And last but not least- the plot is like a strange dream, both concrete and illusory. There is a sense of ancient patience in this world that seems to suggest that as urgent as Arclight's quest is, the bones of the land care little for the life or death of a single hero.

[Kristy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The art is so very, very beautiful (all the kudos to Marian Churchland, seriouslyyyyyy) but the story/characters needed something - more explanation, more substance, more...something. It's a quick read, and I appreciate the concept of switching bodies with an alien entity and how that would play out. I'm just not sure the execution was as great as it could have been.

Kudos for genderqueer characters, though. (And I won't lie, I kinda liked the goose, too.)

Thanks to Edelweiss and Image comics for the e-ARC!

[Alex Sarll]

Interesting to see all the strangeness one expects from Brandon Graham rendered in the far more traditionally pretty style of Marian Churchland. It's perhaps not the easiest story with which to engage emotionally, but still worth just letting yourself wander through it. And from its possessed goose to its Lady who appears to be a bundle of twigs, it shows up the conventionality of too much fantasy just as Prophet calls out laziness in SF. I was also intrigued by the chapter breaks, which capture the physicality of oil paint on a comics page (or indeed screen).

(Edelweiss ARC)

[Kenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely minimalist fantasy story. Slow burning, weird and punchy.

[Kiri · Rating 5 out of 5]

First off, Marian Churchland is one of my absolute favorite artists and I am obsessed with her work. Her illustrations do not fall short in this graphic novel and gives it that extra oomph that it needed to make it to my favorites list. The story was dreamlike in its depiction of life in a harsh, magical wasteland of a world and the inclusion of genderqueer knights also made it all the better in my opinion. I regret not owning this book sooner and will be promptly seeking it out at my local bookstore.

[matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy stories where deep histories and mythologies are hinted at rather than explained laboriously - and this book is almost nothing but hints to something more. I understand that many readers will find the experience frustrating, but if you can handle some ambiguity, this is a truly original work of fantasy that is worth a look.

[Abby Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gorgeous character and world design. If I wasn't so confused by the end, easy 5

[Becky Loader · Rating 2 out of 5]

I consider myself fairly intelligent and a veteran reader. I could not understand the story arc in this graphic novel. Gorgeous art, though.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Visually stunning but the story was all over the place.

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story...had/has potential. There's a possibility for themes to flourish and bloom, however a few things might need to be cleared, or reduced, I'm not sure...

It's problematic yet beautiful. The art outweighs the story as it stands. If I find another volume I'd give it a chance.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honesty the story is a tad hard to follow.
BUT THE ART IS MAGNIFICENT! THE ART IS MAGNIFICENT! THE ART IS MAGNIFICENT! THE ART IS MAGNIFICENT! THE ART IS MAGNIFICENT! THE ART IS MAGNIFICENT! THE ART IS MAGNIFICENT!

I really really love the art!

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

The artwork is breathtaking. Truly. Meanwhile, the story is a tad difficult to hold onto, but does unravel nicely. Not much dialogue to go off of, but the exposition does help the reader to understand what is going on in regards to the blood magic language being crafted on the page.

I absolutely adored the lady and her little goose. And the interactions between her and Arclight were just so mesmerizing, sweet, and profound. So gentle and heartwarming in so many concise panels. I see promise in this series and look forward to reading more about Arclight, Lady Kinga, and this strange and exotic land.

[Lis Carey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lady Kinga is trapped in the body of a monster, living in exile on the edges of the kingdom, and supported only by her loyal knight, Arklight. Then someone turns up wearing her old body, and using her high rank for their own purposes. She and Arclight need to return to the city and fight against an invading power to save their world. the question is, will their magic be strong enough?

This is a graphic novel, and I found the art pleasing and restful for my eyes. I especially liked the goose (sorry, any explanation would be a spoiler), and the way its personality was depicted. This is a fantasy. The goose is dead, or perhaps more accurately, undead; the Lady occupies the body of a monster; a traveling palace is made of the bones of the ancestors of the Blood House, and gets larger with every generation. I can't honestly claim the story made much sense; on the other hand, I can't honestly claim I cared. The hour or so I spent with this book was very enjoyable.

Recommended for a light, pleasant read.

I received an advance reader's copy of this book from the publisher, and am reviewing it voluntarily.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of those failed ambitious failures that I was so disappointed in. Comics are Art Meets Commerce in a very real and micro level. 8House was the brainchild of Brandon Graham and a world building experiment where there'd be rotating team exploring the "8Houses".

I thin they got to about 3 or 4 of the houses when the effort folded, and there was literally no connective tissue developed. The art IS great, yet the stories and pace were not.

It's like you're in business school and your friends are all in the liberal arts side of things. And you have to slowly watch the horror show of them making bad decisions about getting this comic off the ground.

[Tom Malinowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a weird, interesting read! A friend recommended it and I was sold. Queer-esque characters, blood magic, alien possession, floating cities made of bones (not sure what kind though). The art is more sketchy than solid, and that lends the tone for the story. Do I know what's going on? Sort of. Read it twice. This one to savor and take your time although the pages turn quickly (thus it was easy to read twice in a row). If you want something weird this is for you!

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

Huh, this was an interesting read to say the least. Arclight tells the story of… if I’m correct, a lady whose mind is trapped in an alien body waited upon by a genderqueer knight named Arclight. Apparently it’s a part of a larger shared universe, in which author Brandon Graham weaves poetic and delicate stories together. I, myself, am kind of torn on whether or not I liked this comic. To analyze it I’m going to have to break it down into the two most basic mediums of the comic genre: the story and the art.

Let’s start off with the story. I, like many others, found myself a little confused. I love poetic pieces, I am all for comics that rely more heavily on images than text, but here, in this strange and alien world, I feel like more textual explanation would have helped in establishing both the world and the events taking place in the volume. About half way through the comic it veered off-course, and I had no idea what was going on, and that disorientation carried on throughout the second half. However, the world that Graham has created here is phenomenal. I want to know more about the world this is set in. In particular, Graham’s magic system is so interesting and unique. In Arclight, the knights of the Blood House use their own blood to scribe runes into the air, which fuels their magic. This type of magic is unique to members of the Blood House, and other Houses within this world have their own forms of magic. The setting, the creatures, the magic, and the genderqueer society of knights was something I was left wanting more of, and because of that, I think Arclight would have been more impactful and interesting as a novel, or perhaps a more fleshed-out, longer comic series where the dialogue and prose was more carefully crafted and built up.

As for the artwork, once again Marian Churchland (From Under Mountains) has created a BEAUTIFUL book. Churchland’s soft, pastel colour pallet and curved, wispy drawing brings this world to delicate life with a tender vibrance that highlights the poetic beauty of the story. Churchland’s artistic touch fits perfectly with the, somewhat vague, but rapturing concept that Graham has created. From an artistic standpoint, this comic deserves all of the praise… it’s just too bad that Churchland’s artwork couldn’t explain some of the more confusing plot points towards the end of the volume.

So overall, I’m kind of torn. I loved the concept and the artwork, but there wasn’t much content. I feel like we got a hollow shell here, it’s painted beautifully, and well groomed, but in the end, there’s nothing inside of it.

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[Matt Graupman · Rating 3 out of 5]

As an writer/artist, Brandon Graham has created some really wonderful comics; "King City," "Multiple Warheads," etc. are so much fun, full of pun-y humor and really slick art. His work as a standalone writer, though, hasn't connected with me as much. For example, his run on "Prophet" was smart and challenging but always felt - to me - a little underdeveloped. His latest writing project, "Arclight, with his partner Marian Churchland providing the art, is similarly frustrating.

"Arclight" isn't an easy read, not that comics have to be easy to be successful; however, when crafting a whole alternate sci-fi/fantasy world, clarity is really important, and "Arclight" left me feeling lost a lot of the time. Loosely, it's about an androgynous knight protecting his (?) queen after an alien (?) has taken control of her body, forcing her into a new form but... that's about all I got out of it. In the end, I just poured over the artwork, which is absolutely stunning. Churchland has a delicate style that works surprisingly well in a sci-fi-y setting and I found myself gladly getting lost in her panels. If for no other reason, "Arclight" is worth the read for her contribution.

As in some of my other reviews, I feel compelled to admit that fantasy isn't really my thing so "Arclight" started off with a strike against it. I can see it really grabbing some readers but that, unfortunately, wasn't true for me. Both Graham and Churchland are exceptionally talented and prolific, though, so I have no doubt that another of their future projects will blow me away.

[Nore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ooh, I waffle between three and four stars for this.

The art was beautiful - good enough that I'd buy a copy just to keep around to look at, even though I didn't actually like this very much - and I absolutely loved the worldbuilding, from the blood magic (and the hints at other types of magic!), to the skimpy, androgynous clothing, to the monster designs. This comic redeemed "kek" for me because of that silly little goose. I felt like there was so much more to this world than we were able to see in this comic, which in this case felt like we were zoomed in on one part of a planet full of rich, vibrant cultures. All of this was fantastic, and is the reason that I give this four stars.

But frankly... The story and the character development fucking sucks! There's nearly nothing to it, and the really interesting part, the final confrontation with the Big Bad, is completely skipped over. I've read this twice now and I couldn't actually tell you what the Big Bad was up to, because it isn't given enough attention for it to stick in my mind.

And yet, I still recommend picking this up, because the art alone is worth a look - I did read it twice, after all.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Arclight is one of those fascinating, art-focused graphic novels where you finish and exclaim aloud, "WHAT WAS THAT." It's both a good thing and a bad thing. The art is beautiful and wildly creative. The story hints at a larger world of violently different kingdoms filled with magic and monsters. The hints and the art combine to create a very intriguing graphic novel.

But the hints never amount to more than hints. There's a plot, if you can call it that, that I don't think I would have fully appreciated without reading the summary on the back cover. Lady (that's her name, I think?) is now a tree person, but her human form has unexpectedly returned and now she has to...reconcile this, I guess? And Sir Arclight is roaming around with Lady sometimes and sometimes with other knights. And there is death magic! And blood magic! And a city made of their ancestor's bones! Like I said, the hints are great. But the plot never lives up to the hints, ultimately making this a disappointing and deeply intriguing graphic novel.

[Travis · Rating 4 out of 5]

A strange but beautiful work that is much less concerned with plot than it is with invoking its strange science fantasy setting and exploring the life of the major characters as they deal with problems confronting them. There is part of me that wishes there were more story to go with the worldbuilding, but I appreciate worldbuilding on its own so I can't complain. In fact, I would like even more of the sketchbook and developmental part included at the end, since it is a way to explore parts of the setting that wouldn't have fit well into what story there is.

I found the final chapter very interesting. While it is true the characters never outright blame the thing in Lady Kinga's body, there is this kind of implication or assumption that it is the origin of weirdness. So it is interesting having that turned on its head by showing that Kinga was the one who originated the possession, that the problem was caused by her and whatever political conflict she is part of.

[KLS · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful art, unique concepts that intrigued me, alien adventures, magic (always a plus), and genderqueer characters (be still my beating heart). Now, for the catch: if you're a reader who enjoys extremely structured, linear tales, this may not be for you. The coherency of this is at times trying, and the narration feels like it starts in the middle and ends in the middle. We're left with many things unexplained and unexplored. Though the page count is undoubtedly difficult to work within, one can't help but wish the characters and concepts were covered more in depth. I don't regret reading this; far from it, I enjoyed dipping into this magical and alien world, but that's all it was, a dip into it. If you enjoy the things I first listed, and can look past what I spoke of after that, then I'd definitely recommend reading Arclight. It's a bizarre and poetic tale, both aspects I enjoy immensely.