Sweet Tooth In Captivity

An all-new series from Jeff Lemire, the award-winning creator of The Essex County Trilogy and THE NOBODY.

Paperback: 144 pages
Publisher: Titan Books Ltd (25 Mar 2011)
Language English
ISBN-13: 978-0857680440
£9.99

An all-new series from Jeff Lemire, the award-winning creator of The Essex County Trilogy and THE NOBODY. A cross between Bambi and Cormac McCarthy s The Road, SWEET TOOTH tells the story of Gus, one of a rare new breed of human/animal hybrid children, having been raised in isolation following an inexplicable pandemic that struck a decade earlier. Now, with the death of his father, he s left to fend for himself… until he meets a hulking drifter named Jepperd, who promises to help him. In this second volume, Lemire explores the heartbreaking story of Jeppard and how he went from devoted husband to ruthless mercenary. Meanwhile, Gus is captive with other hybrid creatures in a camp where he meets a scientist studying the plague that s wiped out so much of the world.

Now, after what I wrote yesterday about Nemesis I was not expecting anything else from Titan.  So, big thump on the door-mat this morning and…more books!

This is the first Jeff Lemire book I’ve seen so I can honestly say I’ve not read any hype.  Sweet Tooth is an on-going series from Vertigo so many of you might be familiar with it. My first thought on opening the book was that I did not like the artwork. If I ever get that reaction I always put the book down for an hour and then go back to it. I found that, okay, not slick, but the artwork does work with the story.  When someone writes and draws their own book they have the image in their mind of just how it should look.   As noted, the art does match the story well.

The problems usually arise when others are working on the book.  However, Jose Villarrubia does an excellent job in setting the tone with his colour work which has a really “earthy” feel to it –it matches the art and story mood perfectly.  Pat Brosseau’s lettering is clear and, unlike in some comics, does not look glaringly out of place. In other words it all fits in place.

The story itself is well written and enjoyable –if you can call the subject matter “enjoyable”!  This is the second book so check out Titan’s site or your local comic shop for a copy –it’s worth it.

And in case you want to know more there is an interview with Jeff Lemire here:

http://titanbooks.com/blog/interview-jeff-lemire/

And on Jeff’s blog you can catch up on the latest news, see art and much more regarding the Sweet Tooth on-going series:

http://jefflemire.blogspot.com/