Grimm Fairy Tales: 2011 Holiday Edition
Story by Ralph Tedesco
Written by Patrick Shand
Pencils by Reno Maniquis, Anthony Spay, James Lyle, and Jim Rodgers
Reviewed by Steve Seigh
Elizabeth Sellers has it all: a booming acting career, money she can wipe her ass with, and a swarm of friends that love her drunken antics, there’s only one problem … Elizabeth is a total bitch. This holiday season Zenescope treats us to a Christmas tale that mirrors the timeless Charles Dickens classic, A Christmas Carol. Elizabeth serves as our Scrooge, as we follow this high profile actress through her visitation from the three ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future. True to the Grimms Fairy Tale “lesson to be learned” style of story telling this Holiday Edition issue is creepy, smart, and serves to be a great read for any comic book fan this holiday season.
There’s always something to be said for how Zenescope presents their unique brand of comic entertainment. In this particular issue, for example, the fans are treated to character cameos as well as plenty of winks and nods to other books within the series. For newcomers, the story plays off of a world famous tale known pretty much by anyone with a pulse, so they are invited into the book on familiar ground. It’s a smart move when presenting something such as a holiday special. The book stands on it’s own without you needing to have previous knowledge of it’s players, and with the arc all wrapped up by the last page it makes a fine addition to any collector’s shelf.
The pencils of Reno Maniquis, Anthony Spay, James Lyle, and Jim Rodgers all compliment one another with plenty of deep cut line work, passionate expressions, and copious renditions of exemplary cleavage. There’s always a sort of hot simplicity to many of the stories within Zenescope that for all the times they like to scare the shit out of you, they can also hang back and weave a tale of redemption. It feels good to break the pattern every now and again.
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW?
Are you familiar with the timeless Charles Dickens story of A Christmas Carol? Yeah, I thought so. You’ll be fine.
VERDICT
Buy it. If you’re in the mood for some good old fashioned holiday horror with a familiar twist then I recommend that you check this out.
