Holy. Shit. The last issue of Tomboy was good. It was solid, but it was also the first time I felt like it was just another issue in the series. Up until then, each issue had stood out as this amazing issue in an amazing series. The last issue again, was good and way better than most issues out there so I didn’t score it average because frankly Mia Goodwin’s average issue is still ten time better than industry standard.
That all said. This issue blew my fucking socks off. For so many reasons.
That’s the truly crazy thing. There’s so many things, big and small, that are revealed in this issue that there’s no one thing that I can plainly say, “that’s why this issue is fantastic.” It’s really the entire damn issue that is great from beginning to end.
Before we get into all that… how about that cover? That is a cover with meaning, but a meaning you’ll only fully understand until after reading the book. Such a great composition too.
As for the issue. I’m not actually going to tell you what happens. I know right, total dick move, but as I said already there’s no one thing that’s revealed that makes this issue good meaning there’s a lot revealed and all of it is important to the story.
I will go nuts about the artwork and that will be the one and only place that I’ll include story elements. Take everything I’ve said about praised about Goodwin’s layouts in the past five issues and just crank it up ten notches. The demon shit is on point and freaky. It’s no longer something that’s cute and possibly delusional. It’s just straight up terrifying. Michelle Wong takes over on art and coloring, but it’s pretty spot on to Goodwin’s style. I had to do a double take when I saw the credits because it was that close.
There is a flashback sequence of our dirty cop that explains his entire backstory. Not only did this completely change my opinion of his character it revealed how connected all these characters were before the start of the story. Even more incredible is the one simple detail that Goodwin uses to frame each page of this flashback. Because of how she does this is gives you the impression that this flashback is actually his thoughts racing through his head and it’s brilliant. Almost as brilliant as the ending which made me drop my jaw.
There are just some really deep character moments in this issue and it’s fifty/fifty with the story and the art. Both work together in the perfect way that only comics can to deliver a rich and full story.
It’s amazing to me just how damn good this series has been. It reminds me of watching Sailor Moon as a tween and getting to the part in the series in which it broke from the norm of all the other animation I had seen. The episode in particular is when the bad guy and the best friend spend the episode together. It was a moment that changed everything for me in the magic girl genre. And that’s how this entire series has been. It’s been moments that have redefined and changed the genre, but the kicker is… it’s doesn’t really need to be defined as a magic girl story. It’s just one of the best comics out there and has a story that’s so incredible that it transcends genre description.
If you’re not reading it, I don’t know what the hell else to say to make you pick this book up. Pass on another issue of Spider-Man or Batman or Star Wars and give this series a shot. And if you do, I hope you pick up on how deep the sequential art is for this series. It’s quite possibly the best the industry has seen in years.
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