Image Comics Reviews: Big Girls #1
[Editor’s Note: This review may contain spoilers]
Writer, Artist, Colorist: Jason Howard
Letterer: Fondgrafiks
Reviewer: Tony Farina
Summary
When men become giant monsters hellbent on destroying the world, only girls can stop them-BIG GIRLS. Meet Ember-she writes poetry, loves to read, and she’s a 300-foot-tall full-time monster killer! She and the other big girls are all that stand in the way of our world’s complete annihilation! Critically acclaimed artist JASON HOWARD (TREES) takes full creative control as the writer and artist of a tale that’s a cross between JOHN WICK and GODZILLA by way of HBO’s GIRLS.
Positives
Big Girls #1 is special. The rare book that is totally owner operated that uses that singular vision to create a book that is perfect for comic fans of all ages. Ember is a hero for anyone and everyone. If you love super hero comics, there is something for you in her heroic nature. If you love sci-fi, boom, monsters. If you like dark and gritty, well, there is plenty of blood splatters and that last page is nightmare inducing.
Howard smartly ropes in adult readers while not making this a rated M book. Smart indeed. You could hand this to any middle school aged kid and she or he wouldn’t be learning a whole batch of new words for the play ground (be it in real life or on zoom), but she or he would have a world in which to play. If this book existed when I was a kid, I would have been making up adventures it in immediately. OK, I am 47 and I did that anyway. There is so much going on that I couldn’t help myself. I had to dig deep and see if I could look behind ever corner. What is the rest of the world like? How do I get there?
The art and colors only lift an already brilliant concept. I could wax poetic, but I will let you feast your eyes on this:
AND this:
Seriously, when she grabs the bus, I knew this book was not going to mess around and was going to ask us to contend with raising monsters to fight monsters. Who is hurt? We have to assume there are people in that bus and in those buildings right? Seriously. Think about that for a while. I have been thinking about it since I finished a few days ago.
Negatives
I have nothing bad to say about Big Girls #1 except that I now that I know this book exists, I am bummed it didn’t exist sooner.
Verdict
Big Girls #1 comes into the world with guns blazing, literally. It is such a fun world and Howard is smart to show us, as much as he tells us. New books often get bogged down with heavy exposition, but that simply does not happen here. We don’t know everything, but we know enough to care. Ember is a real hero and I can’t believe I have to wait a month to spend more time rooting for her.
