Mae (by Gene Ha) is a super
entertaining little quest in which the titular character’s sister Abbie reappears
after years of being missing, and in the span of a day, ropes Mae into a quest
to save their father. They go into a wondrous alternate world, where Abbie
proceeds to try to find their father mostly through blunt force, and Mae finds
that her skills aren’t entirely useless here, either.
Vol 1 ends after a few failed attempts at rescue, so keep an eye out
for volume 2, which won’t drop until January 2019. Until then, the author's website has a sample you can read online for free.
Plot/Characters: 7/10
Although the general plots of finding a new world, or going
on a quest to save a friend or family member, aren’t new in themselves, this
story is incredibly entertaining. I think that’s because the world-building is
so dazzling that we’re sort of tumbling down the rabbit hole along with Mae. I
especially appreciate the concept that an alternate world might be populated with
humans not Western European and American. I don’t know that the author has
fully utilized that conceit yet, but I’m going to be patient. I will be reading
the second volume, for certain.
When it comes to character, Mae is better fleshed out of the
two sisters. She’s a fan of Anime, Dr. Who, Battlestar Galactica, and anything
else. This nerdiness, combined with a stability that comes from having been the
sister left behind, who had to look after their father, makes her relatable and
very easy to grasp as a character. Ani/Abbie is… less developed. I’m sensing we
might get more from her; in fact, I’m hoping that occurs in the next volume. We
know that she’s a queen.. and she kicks ass. And at the end we’re teased
regarding her relationship with Petra. But beyond that, it’s kind of
superficial.
Maybe it has to be that way. So far the sisters’ conflicts
with each other haven’t gone into much depth either. It all has to do with their
mission, and not to do with their history. You’d think after disappearing for
years, Abbie would be facing a little more anger from Mae, but not yet. It’s
all in their approach to finding their father.
Art: 6/10
I’ll be honest: The art is a little shaky in the beginning
chapters. Over the course of the comic, the style seems to settle into a more
comfortable, blended presentation of the human and nonhuman characters. At
first, though, a lot of the expressions and poses are stiff to the point of
being unrealistic. Occasionally, I stop to stare at a face Mae is making and
cringe. I even went back to the beginning to see if I hadn’t just gotten used
to the style, and no, that’s not the case. Thankfully, after a little bit, it
does get better. And once it does, the style highlights the feeling of fantasy
very well.
I need to read the second volume before I can really get
into themes, but for now, I’m going to go with “Sisterhood” because the
relationship between Mae and Abbie is center stage.
Long story short: I’m definitely going to be looking into
the second volume. I think the world-building hooked me more than anything
else, and anything with a significant sister bond to explore is worth my time.
I received a review copy from Netgalley in exchange for an
honest review.
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