GoComics A to Z, Vol. 23: Leigh Luna Comics
by LucasA weekly feature spotlighting new & unusual features on the GoComics A-Z roster
Feature: Clementine Fox (Leigh Luna Comics)
Creator: Leigh Luna
Format: large format
Frequency: every Monday
Recommended if you like: Fairy tales & adventures stories, The Chronicles of Narnia, Watership Down, Rupert Bear, A Midsummer Night's Dream
Because I have two small children, I spend a lot of time reading illustrated children's books (OK, I admit I owned many of them years before having kids. It's a great genre!). One of our favorite series is "Rupert," the British illustrated children's stories featuring the adventures of a bear and his various animal and fairy tale friends. The stories begin innocently enough, with something unusual happening in the house, backyard or village, but within a few pages you're swept up on some kind of adventure featuring mysterious villains, friendly fairies, and imaginative, unfamiliar environments. Leigh Luna's "Clementine Fox" adventure has all of those elements, and before I had finished reading the very first comic, I knew I'd be looking through the entire adventure, which updates every Monday. Each installment is about the equivalent of the page in a large comic/children's book, but the detail, shading and perspective in Luna's black-and-white illustrations gives them a life and depth that makes them each feel like an illustrated episode that you can spend some time with. (The strip occasionally breaks into color as well, such as the month of December 2014).
The perspective in these strips is usually focused on the characters, but it occasionally opens up to wide vistas of the forests and hillside, heightening the sense that you're on an epic journey. Clementine Fox, Penelope Rabbit and Nubbins the Squirrel are a fun trio to cheer on, and the characters they meet along the way are entertaining as well. The dialogue isn't especially wordy or complex, (sometimes there are no words at all) but I've found the strip is best enjoyed if you take your time and read through them slowly. Oh yeah, and Nubbin' penchant for turning acorns into a sippable refreshment is pretty cool as well. I'm looking forward to accompanying this crew on future adventures, and to keeping up with the work of this enormously talented cartoonist.
Read more Leigh Luna Comics right here on GoComics.