The creators of Myth create a wonderful world that blends storybook fantasy, with comic book fantasy for something that is appealing to both children and adults. It manages to tackle subjects like child abuse and death, while still leaving the reader with hope. The first issue is the catalyst for the entire three issue series. The story takes place during 1951 which gives it a golden age comic feel at times. We meet Sam a runaway orphan that’s been captured and brought back to the orphanage yet again. The caretaker, if you can call her that, locks Sam in a dungeon of sorts. He’s quick to escape again and rather than go through town and be captured yet again he decides to go into the forest that everyone is afraid to enter, but we discover later that there might be a really good reason for this.

There he finds a stone structure with strange markings on it and this stirs up the crows sitting nearby. They being to caw “ch-child” over and over which is very creepy. Sam makes himself at home though and begins reading comic books. That is until a tree monster pops up from behind him and looks to eat him or capture him. You know typical tree monster things. As Sam frantically runs away he bumps into a man’s knee cap. The towering giant looks at the monster and begins fighting with it. The sight mesmerizes Sam as he stands there soaking it in. Eventually the giant wins and Sam has a hero better than his comic books.

The giant doesn’t say a word the entire story, but he and Sam communicate pretty well. Sam follows him back to his house and cleans up a wound for him and shares his comic books. They become fast friends and the giant let’s Sam stay with him. Eventually they raid the orphanage and free the kids, but what neither of them realize is that their friendship may have just unlocked the dangers of the forest.

In terms of structure the plot and pacing are top-notch. From the first issue to the last the story flows together very well, but each issue manages to stand on its own as well. That makes for a very rewarding reading experience.

The dialogue is sharp and realistic. Sam is a motor mouth, but that contrast between him and the Giant is perfect. He answers for him a lot of the times which is exactly what a little kid is likely to do in that situation. Overall Sam is a believable little kid and that was appreciated since so many comics fail to present realistic characters as children.

With this being a world that borders on fantasy and reality, it’s important that the art capture that and here it does. The blending of both words is seamless which makes the story comes across as being set in our reality. I enjoy when a story can do that. Something else that plays to the strength of the story is that it’s in all black & white. The inking is thick and solid, but that helps it with the storybook fantasy element. While that doesn’t make it look like a golden age comic, the design captures the 50’s era which makes it look like a throwback story.

Myth would be a great story to give a child that loves reading, but hasn’t discovered comic books. Also it’s a good first for someone that’s either looking to get into comics or expand their reading into other genres. It’s an entertaining story that earns the title of all-ages because it’s actually a story that can be enjoyed by the young, the old and everyone in-between.

Score: 4/5

Writer: Mike Loniwski Artist: Dan Lauer Letterer: E.T. Dollman Publisher: Alterna Comics Price: $3.99 Website