Tales from the Lower Shelves... 'Rumble, Volume One: What Colour of Darkness' – Arcudi, Harren, Stewart (Image)

Welcome back to another installment of that occasional series where I suddenly realise that there are shelves below eye height and my knees will actually let me bend down for further inspection. I find something that I had completely forgotten about and post my thoughts right here. It helps me to justify the shelf space being taken up and also saves me a few quid (by revisiting old books instead of just going out and buying more, which is fun but...)

This time round, we're looking at Volume One of 'Rumble', a book that I had totally forgotten was there until I saw Volume Two and decided it was time for a re-read. I vaguely remember having a lot of fun with this one, back in the day, so lets have another look and see if (and how) it holds up...

Rathraq fought the monsters of old, on behalf of humanity, in the murky depths of pre-history. He was betrayed and forgotten about as the world moved on. Now he's back to take up the fight once more and dish out a little revenge at the same time. Only, in these modern times, is there still a fight to be fought? Is a monster still evil if all it wants is to be left alone and make a living ? And where is Rathraq's body in all of this?

When Bobby isn't tending bar, and moaning about his love life, he will be caught up in Rathraq's quest and forced to make some tough choices if he wants to survive in this strange new world...

'What Colour of Darkness' is an odd one to call as it doesn't do much (not when you look at it) but still manages to be a comic book where it is so easy to get lost in the pages. It's basically a massive introduction with a little bit of fight, right at the end, to make you feel like you haven't been set up to buy Volume Two, just to find out what happens next. There's not a lot of story at all and it's not as if there are even any big questions to lead you into the next book, just the unspoken promise that the fight will continue. So then, why did I go out and buy the next two volumes (which you'll hear about in due course)...?

Well, first up we have one of my favourite tropes in genre fiction, the warrior out of time. In this case, Rathraq is so far from his own time that even if he wasn't possessing a scarecrow, it would still make for compelling reading watching him adjust. And that's the thing, Rathraq is possessing a scarecrow and he has no interest in adjusting to the modern world, he just wants payback, That makes for an even more compelling read as anything could happen and it does. Even though the plot, at this point, is vague to the point of non-existence, it's still fun to watch Rathraq do his thing. Talking of which, the fight scenes are amazing. Like you're watching them happen instead of just reading it.

What's also brilliant is watching Arcudi and Harren slowly pull back the curtain (so to speak) and show us that there is another world hiding in the shadow of this one. And it's so beautifully done with the Esu folk just getting on and living a life that so similar to our own, just with more arms and maybe a hydra as a pet. You know how it is ;o)

When you see how peacefully these folk are living, you have to ask yourself if Rathraq is doing the right thing by carrying on a fight that ended thousands of years ago, even if things do kick off right at the end. And that is why I kept reading originally, it just took me a while to remind myself.

So, what seems like a long drawn out introduction, to this world, may well still be but there's a lot of other stuff happening that makes 'What Colour of Darkness' a book worth sticking with. A slow burning tale from Arcudi and gorgeous artwork from Harren (with colours to match from Stewart) that really brings the weirdness of this tale to life. There's an argument to be had about the pacing, of this book, but it still sets things up nicely for Volume Two. It's been ages since I read Volume Two so I can't remember a thing about it. Pop back in the next week, or so, and you'll find out ;o)