Obscure Comic of the Month is a column where I take a look at a comic or series that hasn't really been talked about. This covers independent comics, zines, weird spin-offs, webcomics and more.
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Crowsong by Tony Vanraes with art by Theo Brenni, Bentti Bisson, Justin Mason, and Chris Anderson - 2019
Contains Mild Spoilers
In the world of self-publishing it's hard to stand out. The temptation to just go four sheets to the wind and produce a magnum opus with the hopes that if-you-build-it-they-will-come is almost always at the back of your mind.
The wiser creator knows, however, that showcasing your talents on smaller projects is the smarter move. Crowsong, by Tony Vanraes, is one such example of this approach. Serving as an anthology comic, with Vanraes writing and different artists covering each strip, it aims to cover a broad variety of genres, showing not only Vanraes's versatility as a writer, but also casting a wide net towards a readership of varying interests.
The first story, The Immolated Lady, is a 'dig two graves story' of a fantasy warrior seeking vengeance for the death of her family. The story is sharp, with vivid, lively artwork depicting the conflict between two unnamed fantasy races with animal-like features. Its ending, where the protagonist chooses to perpetuate the cycle of vengeance rather than seek reconciliation, is also as cutting as it is tragic.
The Contract, a story of a hopeless future war, where mankind makes an unholy alliance with a Borg-like machine cult, is certainly more visually creative, but is one of those short comics that really feels it doesn't have the room to cover it's own backstory, and strains against it's page count. While it's ending is shocking and surprising, it does feel like a compromised version of a greater saga.
Hatchling is a very short comic about a barbarian warrior's quest for a magical crown that will bestow him great power, but at the cost of his humanity. Unlike The Contract, Hatchling benefits from it's shortened page-count, keeping the plot lean and to the point, revelling in its quick, brutal violence and jumping head-first into its grotesque final twist.
Squires tells the story of two unassuming young men who get pulled into the parody of a space adventure led by a stereotypically overenthusiastic hero in power armour, only to realise they are completely out of their depth with the death and destruction all around them. While well written and drawn, I find that genre parodies like this are a dime a dozen these days, often retreading the same kind of jokes gaming webcomics were doing back in the late 00's. Its not bad by any means, but just really not my tempo. That being said, it is written as a prologue of sorts, and if continued, Id certainly give it the chance to win me over.
All things considered, Crowsong hits more than it misses, and leaves the reader wanting to see how Vanraes work comes together on a longer project, especially with regards to the artists, who are all perfectly suited for the style of each story. Vanraes has been keeping the work up since 2019, and if Crowsong is anything to go by, he's probably got more interesting stories to bring us in the future.
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Jack Harvey 2022. Crowsong (c) Tony Vanraes. Images used under Fair Use.
