Broken Frontier

What happens when imaginary friends go bad?  They threaten the very existence of the Earth…

Writer Jason Burns has been garnering some attention in recent years with his titles A Dummy’s Guide to Danger and more recently Curse of the Werewoman.  Now he is headlining the all new Outlaw Entertainment with several graphic novels, including Imaginary Friends.   One thing to say right off the bat – this title is currently being billed as an All Ages comic and I do take a small issue with that.  While there are quite a few sexual innuendos which will likely go over the heads of most really young readers (so no harm, no foul) there is a suicide scene which includes some blood and might be disturbing to the really young.  With that said, on to the rest of the review…

Rex Montana is one of the best imaginary friends out there – a fearless adventurer in the mode of Indiana Jones.  It is for that reason that he is charged with a mission of the utmost urgency – stopping imaginary friend gone bad, Shift Valentine, from breaking the cardinal rule of imaginary friends and becoming real.  Once real, Valentine could take over the entire world!  Of course, Rex is not expected to go it alone.  He is given a team of the best and the brightest… which in terms of imaginary friends is a bit of a mixed bag.  There is Jo Jo the Clown with the ability to create anything out of balloon sculpture, Bones Magee, a skeleton known for falling apart… literally and deliberately, Deer John, an anthropomorphic buck who is the best tracker in the business, Veronica Meat, a beauty pageant type with the ability to create anything meat out of thin air, and Little Cindy – a little girl who remains mute because her voice has the power to destroy.  Rex and his team must face challenges and perils in their effort to locate Shift Valentine and shut him down for good but they had better work fast because Shift has a new child under his thumb and is working on the device that will let him enter the real world for real!

Burns’ work here is imaginative (yes, sorry for the play on words), creative, clever, and subversive as well.  He plays with tradition and expectation and turns both on their heads.  For example, for every child who has ever been told that thunder is “the angels bowling,” Burns creates a figure called the Bowler who, while being far from angelic, is responsible for the sound of thunder with his bowling alley.  On the other hand, the “icons of the Holidays” – Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, etc. all turn out to be despots, bums, and jerks in a reversal of their public images.  Amidst all of this, though, there are also surprisingly touching moments – most of them revolving around Little Cindy.  The story behind why she is the way she is and the fears that she has are nearly heartbreaking and a sobering reminder amidst all of the adventure and tomfoolery of how the world can hurt and damage children. 

The story is not without its flaws, however.  For one thing, the story spends perhaps a bit too much time on the quest of the imaginary friends and gives the villain a bit short shrift.  Secondly, the character of Rex Montana comes off as perhaps a bit too perfect and this makes some scenes a bit predictable.  Thirdly, the suicide scene, while quick and somewhat glossed over, seems a discordant note – something a little too dark in tone than what we’ve been treated to up to this point.

The art by Dustin Evans, on the other hand, is perfect for this story.  It is cartoony and embracing clichés even while building upon them, twisting, turning and making them unexpected.  He renders the characters and background equally well; giving the world of the imaginary friends a fantasy setting that is relatable and amusing at the same time.

While Imaginary Friends may not quite be suitable for very young readers it will likely be an enjoyable read and sometimes thought provoking for older readers of all types.  It can be read on several levels which is a hallmark of the best cartoons and comics – keeping the adults interested at the same time as the kids.  The $7.99 price for the full-length graphic novel is a smart marketing move and with strong entries such as this title, hopefully readers will continue to see more from this publisher.