Young Shadow

by Ben Sears

Policiers ripoux, promoteurs immobiliers véreux…de jeunes héros combattent l’impitoyable monde des adultes… pour construire un monde meilleur basé sur la solidarité et l’entraide !

Les nuits de Vis City sont bien calmes… Faute de super-méchants à l’horizon, le jeune super-héros, Young Shadow, secourt des animaux domestiques perdus et aide ses amis à récolter des dons alimentaires. Mais un soir, alors qu’il prend en filature des policiers au comportement suspect, il découvre un horrible complot fomenté par des promoteurs immobiliers et des industriels peu scrupuleux, qui menace la sécurité de Vis City et de ses habitants. Pour déjouer ce plan diabolique, Young Shadow va devoir donner quelques coups de bâton et de genouillère, mais surtout compter sur ses amis et s’associer avec la mystérieuse Super Spirale, une autre justicière masquée dont il ignore l’identité…

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Middle Grade, Crime, Mystery, Fantasy, Adventure

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2018

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

While out patrolling Bolt City one night, super hero Young Shadow finds a mysterious key...

The art style and the black, white, and yellow color scheme caught my eye and piqued my interest. Not long after, my wife bought it for me for some reason.

Anyway, this is a dystopian super hero story, drawn in the style that's remniscent of a children's book but with some Vaugh Bode thrown in for good measure. There's some surprisingly intricate linework in the backgrounds. It looks to me like Ben Sears used a combination of pen, ink, and charcoal for the drawings. The coloring is black, white, and various shades of yellow, giving the book a unique look.

The story is pretty standard super hero fair. Young Shadow has the MacGuffin and everyone else wants it. The characters aren't all that deep but it's a super hero book so that's par for the course. I really don't have anything bad to say about Young Shadow. I liked it but wasn't ass over tea kettle for it. I'll give Ben Sears another shot if the opportunity presents itself.

Young Shadow was a fun read for a Sunday morning. Three out of five stars.

[Alexander Peterhans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the art, the story and characters are so so.

3.5 stars

[Mike E. Mancini · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ben Sears first book with Fantagraphics is a YA action comic in the tradition of many superhero comic of the past. His style and storytelling are both clean and clear. These solid little action vigilante stories are common enough meaning the art is always the deciding factor. I’m interested in most anything Sears decides to draw. His work here is probably his finest yet.

[Hamilton Carter · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had a hard time understanding what the point of the book might be. The 'young' here seems inexperienced, but gritty, maybe well-intentioned, but also ill-messaged. I suppose it's a perk that the folks he beat up turned out to actually be criminals although, to start, they merely looked homeless. For me, the story didn't go anywhere. The art is monochromatic, as you might have divined by looking at the cover. All in all, there were better ways for me to spend my time.

[▫️Ron S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Young Shadow is maybe not the book to start with, when reading Ben Sears. But I haven't read the others, so I can't say :) My favorite aspect of this book is the immersive environment. There is a feeling like the story and characters are all filtered through some element that renders them alien to some degree - there is an alien pacing, an alien set of rules (like the fauna, architecture, and a system of AI 'lanterns') - all very much reminiscent of children's book illustrators like Tomie dePaola and Mercer Mayer. In fact - this is a juvenile Nightwing by dePaola and Mayer... pretty much straight up. I like that the story is slow-paced at least half of the time, as I think pace is a problem in a lot of comics. If comics today got any more kinetic or reliant on splash pages, they'd just be a slap in the face - with no paper or trip to the store required. My mind played a lofi soundtrack while reading it, as well. All in all - I'm realizing how much of a refreshing read Young Shadow was, the more I describe it :)

[Juju · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really dig the blocky and grainy art style. But our main kid here is a Grumpy Robin. Coulda used more color in the art and in the story.

[Piesito · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un encantador comic dirigido a todos los públicos :)

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

I missed the dude and his robot in this one but because I love Sears's art so much, I enjoyed it nonetheless. I could see myself getting attached to Young Shadow eventually. I'd love to see a team-up between him and the stars of the other books. I wish more librarians knew about this series! It fits a great niche for older elementary-aged audiences who want a little more edge to their storytelling but it's still appropriate for them. The whole series has definite appeal for middle-school and high school-aged kids as well. It's cool to see Fantagraphics put out this one--I hope they put out more of his stuff! No shade to Koyama at all! But Fantagraphics has a bit more reach as a publisher.

[Mateen Mahboubi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve enjoyed Sears’ other Double+ Adventure books and this one was no exception. Great art and a cool righteous superhero that always does the right thing and protects the city. Story isn’t the most engaging but gets the job done.

[StrictlySequential · Rating 4 out of 5]

Visual: ****
Like Shaafsma said, the strength of his art surpasses his writing quality- I can even somehow "see" that he has premium passion and dedication to produce an optimum visual product. He renders an atmosphere of fun somehow, despite the settings usually being haggard, that makes me want to keep progressing through all his weird cityscapes wondering what this&that are that I notice living in the ample nooks he always seems to afford.

Narrative: ****
Ben Sears is one of the few creators who can tilt my perspective towards childlike wonder- making my sense of disbelief much more willing than usual. He writes with a lively spirit that combines so well with his engaging art! I would never have read more than two of my five "double+ adventures" [youth·in·suits crime·fighter comics] without granting him the flexible subject/genre eligibility that the greatest and my favorite creators are allowed otherwise.

A quick few who have my "Childlike Wonder Badge":
Carl Barks
Artur Laperla
Anouk Ricard
Liniers
Freres Coudray

Sure, there are more, but Sears may be one of the only non-legendary domestics since I've pushed my reading to maximum internationality.

[Ricky Lima · Rating 5 out of 5]

What I love about this book is how wholesome it is. Young shadow is like the living embodiment of community, that's his super power! He takes care of everyone around him and they take care of him as well. Sears does a fantastic job of showing that without it being cringe. Sometimes when I read things that present idealized ways of living it can be too heavy handed and feel unreal. Like the world is too perfect, characters are too kind and understanding. But Sears gives us a character with strong values that feel natural. Also I loved all the dogs in the book! Gotta have dogs!

[Claire Mann · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

This was a really fun romp! The artwork is adorable and I loved the yellow color palette. The story itself was on the light side, but I didn’t really mind that because Young Shadow was a good character. I didn’t love the strong anti-police message, but I suppose within Plusworld it was warranted since every policeman we met was corrupt.

I will definitely be picking up more of these.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bought this based on a few drawings I’ve seen Ben post and was glad I took the risk.
Loved Ben’s art. Energetic. Precise. But still had the energy of a looser style. Panels are packed with backgrounds too.
The story is fun and feels simple but has deceptively deep world building. I’m gonna need to get more of his work.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 3 out of 5]

You may know that Batman was in part inspired by both Zorro and a 1931 creation, The Shadow, who persists to this day. Young Shadow is beautifully drawn and illustrated by Ben Sears, a kid version of a night-time crime fighter. The art is the real appeal; the story not all that engaging to this reader.

[Madalyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the art work in this!! This is a very light story, like you’re catching an episode of a tv show you’ve never seen before but you’re immediately entranced and want to know more about the world and the characters.

[Ulla Saar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very very cool visual language and world he has created. I love it that there were so many women badasses! The fighting scenes were visually tad weak and confusing and he story could have been a bit stronger but defs gonna read more of his books!

[Bill Coffin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely wasn’t expecting such a straightforward costumed superhero story out of Fantagraphics, but this was a very pleasant surprise, even if it was a little thin on the plotting. Really fun artwork and it left me wanting to read more.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

J'aime bien le concept et les personnages présentés de cette BD !

Un superhéro contre des flics ripoux et une volonté commune de faire le bien, le message dénoncé est vraiment chouette tout comme la part de folie.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.

[Brian Clopper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gorgeous art but the story is too slight.

[Susanne · Rating 1 out of 5]

Totally disappointed. Forced myself to finish reading. It gets a little better but, meh!

[Raphael · Rating 2 out of 5]

Endearing characters and illustration but lacking development and narrative weight. Charming, but no desire to revisit.

[Dolores · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. A bit hard to follow.

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the art and coloring but! He story just wasn't for me.

[Jesus de Velasco · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dibujo cute, temática ACAB pero historia flojita.

[hannonle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gráficamente me encanta, la historia más flojilla.

[Sergio Gomez Prados · Rating 2 out of 5]

A nivel de dibujo me encantó el estilo que tiene, la historia... meh

[Leandro Souza · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5/5

[Alasondro Alegré · Rating 3 out of 5]

★★★½