Though I know it is oversimplifying things to say this, there are really two basic kinds of story in the fantasy genre. The first type has elves and magic and powerful relics with portentous names, like the "Great Ring of Eternal Diptheria." I know many people love those stories, but they just aren't my cup of black ale. The second type has enormous, hairy, foul-mouthed men (and sometimes women) who cart around gigantic swords and hack the living daylights out of each other. Now THAT, I can appreciate!
If, like me, you want your fantasy tales uncomplicated and violent, you're in for a treat with Avatar's Wolfskin #1 by Warren Ellis and Juan Jose Ryp. There isn't really much to say about the plot of the first issue. The Wolfskin of the title is a lone warrior from an infamous brotherhood of fighters. He is happy to mind his own business in life, but he is waylaid by troublemakers who just can't leave a stranger walking through their territory alone. Much extremely graphic hacking and beheading ensues. There is a larger plot building about a village at war, but this issue is mostly about the hacking.
Warren Ellis has earned a reputation as a writer who is not afraid to push the envelope or do the unexpected. You never know what you are going to get with a Warren Ellis comic, but you know it will be something different. Ellis brings his over-the-top style to the fantasy genre with Wolfskin, and it's a breath of fresh air compared to some of the self-important, elf-laden stuff out there. Ellis is also, along with Garth Ennis and Brian Bendis, one of comic's greatest writers of good old-fashioned cussin'. Even though there is more fighting than talking in this debut issue, our hero does show he can wield his tongue as well as his sword. (Avatar doesn't have a "mature readers" label on this book, but it is clearly not for the young or easily offended!)
Ryp's artwork is incredibly detailed, and wonderfully depicts both the violence and beauty of this world. Every time you pick the book up, you will notice elements in the art that you missed the last time through. The detail in some of the fight scenes suggests that he really brushed up on his Grey's Anatomy for this series.
Dig your least moldy old animal skin out of the closet, strap on your rusty broadsword, and pillage your way to Four Color Fantasies to try out Wolfskin #1. Just leave your pointy elf hat and wand of unicorn summoning at home.
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