Enter the Asylum. Accent Uk (2018)

A very enjoyable and engaging anthology takes a clever idea, attendees at The Asylum Steampunk Festival feature in a collection of stories. 
Lady Clarajane and Captain Charles Rivington in The Rescue That Can Never Be Mentioned.  Dave West (Story), Russell Mark Olsen (Art). Lady Clarajane leaves the airship to chase a lead about the professor and finds herself in trouble. A neat story with excellent plot mechanics packed into five pages that never feels crowded or rushed.  Russell Mark Olsen's art shines, a single page panel with four smaller panels inserted is full of detail, movement and clarity. The cast are just on the right side of cartoon and the facial expressions and body language are both elequont.
Rufus Trimble in Dressing for a Live Concert. Dave West (Writer & Art) , a nicely paced and delivered joke, the art and words balanced to get the maximum impact.
Those Courageous Climberts in The Ascent. Gary Crutchley (Writer , Art), Matt Soffe (Colours). My favourite story in the anthology. The sort of absurdity that friends who are at an outing will find themselves involved it. The conversation is a joy and the conclusion is pitch perfect.
Matt Soffe' colours give depth and weight to the gossamer story.
Winnie Burton in Steeping. Dave West (Writer), Mikos Al Teri (Art). Dave West has created a frame for the glorious art by Mikos Al Teri. It is barely a fragment, it serves its purpose perfectly, creating the space for the art to draw out every thing that might be there. The sharp spiky art is distinctive and deeply engaging, the colours and lines draw in the reader and and build a palpable atsmophere. 
Dame Dunkit, Lady Petticoat Tails & Edward Teddy in A Teddy's Tale. Coplin Mathieson (Writer), Amma Francesca Schiaaloi (Art), Matt Soffe (Colours). Going to a major steampunk event is a big deal, there is a lot of preperation involved and getting it right takes work. No one likes being upstaged, least of all by someone you brought to the show. Action is taken. Amma Francesca Schiaaloi's art is expressive and engaging, all the cast are full of life. Matt Soffee colours are vital to enhance the details and tones of the story and do so beautifully.
Enter the Asylum is a fan letter to steam punk fans and a very enjoyable comic in its own right. A delicate balance has been achieved due to the confident talent of the creators. Great fun.
 

Kia Wordsmith. Dave West (Writer), Ian Ashcroft (Art). Accent UK (2018)

The first issue of a fantasy story that set up the story possibilities with skill and care and  leaves the reader with a pleasurable anticipation of where the story will go next.
Kia is a young woman living in the city of Arrak-Al-Tar, The City of Wonders. The city is engaged in a war, part of an alliance with others against a common enemy. The war is taking a toll on the city that the city is trying to ignore. Kia is bored and feeling stifled, running the rooftops at night offers freedom and the possibility of adventure. A meeting with a legendary thief sparks her curiosity and leads her to an unexpected place and a consequential action. The story is slim, it has to introduce the cast and context which does not leave a lot of room for plot, that is presented at the end as the story engine gets properly started.
Kia is a very engaging lead character, craving adventure and stimulation outside of the limits of her life, she has the energy and curiosity that engage the reader. She is never entitled or annoying, she is impulsive and willing to take a risk.
Ian Ashcroft's art has to carry a substantial burden in this issue, to establish the context and create the visual form for the story. His luxurious art is a pleasure to read, using panels to frame and extend the story, the details are beautiful and telling. There is a lush romance to the art that is exactly what the story needs to fly.
Kia Wordsmith has the feel of a contemporary version of the great romantic science fiction comic strips of the early days of newspaper comic strips. Space was filled with vividly realised alternative civilisations that were the playgrounds for adventurers and magicians. Kia Wordsmith has the same confident approach to the possibilities of what might lie behind a door in a magicians floating castle.
Dave West and Ian Ashcroft have opened a door to a deeply inviting universe where a  spirited adventurers who will make her mark to the deep joy of the readers.