Broken Frontier

Ambrosia Publishing is a big, big thing.

It’s brand spanking new, and so is, as of yet, largely unknown, but it won’t be long before its name is spoken of in the similar sage or squealing tones as Achaia Press, Oni Comics, Dark Horse Comics, Vertigo, and the much lamented Vertigo sister line Paradox Press.

A grand mark of distinction, however, between those that came before and Ambrosia, is that Ambrosia’s comics are serialized online, for free, before each story is then intermittently collected into hard copy graphic-novel-sized compilations, available for purchase online as either print editions or PDF downloadable files.

Even more incredible: taking a cue from Radiohead, Ambrosia is offering all their works, if purchased in their electronic versions, via a “Pay What You Want” system, meaning readers can pay one cent, one dollar, five dollars, or five hundred dollars (eureka!), literally whatever they want, and Ambrosia then hands over the entire graphic novel, able to be read on any PC or MAC.

The most amazing part, then, (oh yes, there’s more) is that Ambrosia is more than just a typical webcomic site, because its products are truly of the style, substance, format, and excellence as those comics published by leading small press publishers.  These are comic  books, and they’re available to readers in a way that should, by all means, be embraced and abused to the furthest extent possible.

I recently had the pleasure of reading all three Of Ambrosia’s inaugural offerings, and was so blown away by the experience that I simply had to share.  Here, then, is a smattering of what you’ll find available at www.ambrosiapublishing.com:

Clockwork Creature, Volume 1

Ambrosia kicked off in serious style with the uncanny Clockwork Creature, a horror book in the mold of the classic 1970’s Man-Thing, only with a decidedly more modern Mignola-esque visual aesthetic.

The story is an eerily simple one: a patchwork mechanical thing of monolithic size staggers into a small pastoral community, scaring the townsfolk and bringing about a number of inexplicable disappearances.  Then, a strange vaudevillian villain, who seems to hunt the bizarre beasty, enters the scene, rallies the locals and sets them against the “Clockwork Creature”.  What follows is a confrontation as classic as it is unique, and in any event captivating as hell.

Newcomer Kyle Strahm writes, pencils, inks, and letters this black-and-white pulp horror piece, peddling minimalist dialogue, stark Gothic visuals, and a protagonist monster as unsettling in appearance as it is adorable (and therefore rooted for).   Clockwork Creature is a marvelous debut, as strong graphically as it is conceptually as it is in detailed execution.  It’s a solid package, delivering everything sought for inside a modern surreal horror epic.

And Volume 1 seems to be just the beginning: the villain is firmly defeated, but the story of the creature goes on; the story of its origin—and of how and why it gained an enemy like that of the baddie in Volume 1—yet to be revealed.  But anyone who chances to read all pages available now, will likely be glued to the internet until they find out more.

They Do Not Die! GN

Next comes the self-contained story They Do Not Die! by writer Scott O. Brown and artist Horatio Lalia, a more mainstream horror tale as compared to Clockwork, about an Alabama town that harbors a dark secret, centuries old.  Much like the seminal classics Children of the Corn, Stepford Wives, and Society , the story follows the journey of impressionable lead characters ignorant of the truth, of their movement toward a loss of innocence due to some truly nasty discoveries.

The book opens with Megan and Borden—teen lovers on the eve of their eighteenth birthdays.  But Borden’s big one-eight arrives first, and Megan, unassumingly, stumbles upon the aftereffects of a horrific commemorative event held deep in the local woods.  As the days roll by, and Megan’s search for the truth grows deep, the entire town seems structured to hide an unthinkable reality, and unlike in Scooby-Doo, they’re hardly about to let some snot-nosed kid ruin all the fun.

They Do Not Die! is, thus far, Ambrosia’s most mixed offering, though far be it that to mean it isn’t worth reading.  The story is perhaps too tired in its outline, and the same can be said for its characters, but writer Brown manages some sincerely creepy scenarios, a fast-paced flow, and moments that bring to mind the highly-memorable Green Candles or La Pacifica (both published by the aforesaid Paradox Press).

The art by Horatio Lalia is a wonderful blend of old-school greats such as Alex Nino and Wally Wood—gritty, detailed, fluid, structured into story-telling bar none.  There are sequences gorgeously rendered, nail-biting in their layout, and while there’s nothing flashy about Lalia’s style, his exhaustive use thick, shadowy ink brings about a sinister quality  necessary to the book’s endeavors.

While not a project that’ll make anyone’s top ten list, They Do Not Die! is nevertheless a solid graphic novel, and it’s complete in and of itself.  A single-shot novel-length horror tale, well told, immaculately drawn.  Derivative, yes, but more than a match for any Dark Horse, Image, or IDW title on the racks.

Smuggling Spirits Volume 1

Which brings us to my personal favorite, and the property with the greatest potential thus far, Smuggling Spirits is a clever book, as the wordplay of its title suggests.

Taking place within an undated apocalyptic future, the world has been overrun by a varied demonic race known as Darklings.  Humans are terrified to walk the streets at night, but an alcohol smuggler named Al refuses to see the shift in things, believing he yet lives within a mundane world of vagrants, drunks, lowlifes, and nosy cops.  Thankfully, he’s dragging around the sole surviving child of his previous mob-affiliated boss, and the kid can see things for what they really are, and continually steer Al to protect the both of them from a twisted and vicious world  gone amok.

Written by Ben Fisher, Spirits is a genius-level concept guided by a deft hand.  Al’s delusion is managed throughout without becoming tiresome or proving a too-thin story twist stretched overly far.  The device, even for being a device, supports the epic as a whole, and looks to keep its charm well beyond this first chapter.  The shrewd child character of Nathan is a wonderful foil to the surly Al, and their noir-tinted journey through a demon-infested dystopia is chicken soup for any fantasist’s soul.

All critical evaluation of the book would be woefully incomplete without mention of artist Mike Henderson’s contribution.  His work is reminiscent of 90’s big-wig Vince Giarrano (Manhunter Vol. 3, Redblade, Badlands), though he also wields a bit of Eddie Campbell in his stroke.  The demons in the book are fantastically creepy and/or magnificent, the action wowing, and the Sin City-esque noir quality beautifully played.

All in all, the most incomplete of the selections story-wise (nothing more than a literal first chapter, not matter that it’s sixty pages long), but it’s nevertheless the one I’m most eager to  return to.

What’s Next?

Clockwork Creature and Smuggling Spirits are both ongoing online serializations, although Spirits apparently reached its grand conclusion this past September.  Both should soon see second graphic novel compilations, and Ambrosia isn’t about to stop there.

Already announced is a new serialized series called Dusk blending vampires with manga-inspired storytelling and art, a new secret series called Atheist, and—an announcement that has me cartwheeling for joy—the collection and serialization of Rafer Roberts’ long-beloved self-published sensation Plastic Farm, a book that’s seen twelve issues print-published in the past, and now lucky would-be readers can get in on the ground floor and read the whole damn thing.  All the comics you want, whatever you want to pay, all to be downloaded in minutes.

Online and downloadable comics aren’t groundbreaking things in and of their own right, but Ambrosia is looking to offer comics and stories geared toward the print-reading comic book public, which bloody well is a bridge for one seriously wide gap in the current comic book climate.

So get on over to the Ambrosia website and then sign up for their Feedburner RSS Email Feed and get all their comics delivered straight into your email inbox, every time a series is updated with new pages.  Do it before these fine creators come to their senses and start talking about $12.99 this and $19.99 that.  The books would be worth it, even then, but don’t you think it’s better to take advantage asap?