SHADOW SERVICE #1: This Day is Bollocks! (Spoiler-Free EARLY Review!)

Writer Cavan Scott and the art team throw us straight into the grimy world of personal detective work with the lead character Gina Meyers a cynical young woman with a dark and traumatic past working a case. Sounds like a typical detective shtick except for the fact that Gina was born a witch and can use magic in her work. It’s a well-constructed opener that establishes our main protagonist and her place in a world where magic is real and things really do go bump in the night. There is a dark, gritty feel to this world and the creative team doesn’t shy away from this.

The characters we meet all give off an air of menace in there own ways as Scott sets up two plot threads which may prove to be related later, one involving a character Gina is doing work for with a bad reputation named Gideon Quill and another involving Gina and some mysterious characters who also have supernatural powers. Gina is fleshed out from early on in the issue. The tough-as-nails image is tempered with the knowledge of her past, everyone else in the issue is mysterious and we are left with a great cliffhanger at the end of the issue. If I have any criticism it may be that the story is set in London but that isn’t as fleshed out as well as it could be and overall the locations feel generic, hopefully, that’ll become more established in future issues.

The art from Corin Howell is strong. Clean, bold lines from page one all the way through the issue mean that every page and panel are well defined, clear and never feel rushed, I really liked the very first panel because of the reflections in the water-soaked street and its attention to details like that, that for me, can really make or break a new book. The action sequences are fluid, dynamic and there are two exceptional splashes that really make me excited for what Howell has in store for us in the rest of the series. Character look is consistent and Howell mixes up the angles and paneling so that the comic never feels boring. Triona Farell takes Howell’s bold lines and really elevates the moodiness and gritty feel of the book with solid moody, muted greens and purples punctuated with arterial red… it takes the line art to another level and really adds to the feel of the issue.

The lettering is well placed and spaced but I want to take a moment to mention sound effects, they always there in comics but we never speak about them, there are around twenty-two sound effect moments in this comic not counting ones where the character shouts or swears and every one has its own color and uniqueness that add a layer to the art that we often discount or just outright ignore. AndWorld Design has done a superb job lettering this issue, take your time when reading or rereading this issue to appreciate that.