Suburban Glamour

I spotted the above gem in the preview for Suburban Glamour Volume 1 which will be out this upcoming week and is published by Image Comics. What I like about the above panels by Jamie McKelvie is that they tell a story with no words, giving you the cinematic feeling that you’d get from a well done silent movie. Too often comic books force a story along with endless talking heads only to be interrupted by fist fights. With a series of 14 panels McKelvie brings you inside the world of his teenage protagonist Astrid Johnson.

Sadly the rest of the book falls back into conventional storytelling with the talking heads which populate daytime television. In fact you’d think that the above panels were the cover art, but sadly the publisher has tucked them inside the book. McKelvie also has a good eye for fashion, although I’d love to see him take it a step further and bring some texture into the book. Yes I get the fact that he’s going for a Patrick Nagel look, but after a few pages this gives you a sort of stark look which takes away from the story. Besides you don’t have to be too slavish to the 80s. Although McKelvie does seem to be off to a good start with the series, and I’ll look forward to more of his work.