Brandon Borzelli's Geek Goggle Reviews
Five Ghosts #1 of 5
Image Comics
Barbiere & Mooneyham
Fabian Gray is a character that appears to be possessed by five entities or characters, hence the title. He embarks on a quest that isn't entirely clear during this issue but appears to be part James Bond and part Indiana Jones as the character is suave with the ladies, has a gadget guy and takes twists and turns in his quest that takes after the whip-cracking archaeologist. It's a very good read and you definitely get your money's worth with thirty-two pages of story. I recommend checking this out.
Gray obtained something called the Dreamstone, which has given him the abilities of The Archer, The Samurai, The Wizard, The Detective and The Vampire. While it's not explicitly stated the assumption is these are the abilities derived from the legendary characters such as Sherlock Holmes and Dracula. It appears Gray can only call on their powers one at a time and they don't always fire when he asks them to, which is problematic.
Gray's quest isn't simply one of treasure seeking in this comic though. He seems to be looking for answers to his own mystery as well as one of a previous encounter that apparently still haunts his thoughts. It's a good plot to send the book off on.
The premise definitely reminds me of the short lived comic called Cowboy Ninja Viking, but the difference here is that Gray appears to have all of his mental faculties and in relative control over this ability to switch personalities. The aspect of adventure definitely helps to keep this book moving into unpredictable directions and that is a big plus.
The artwork is from the same vain as Who Is Jake Ellis. The pages take a background color and stick with it for two pages while contrasting it with another complimenting tone. This then repeats with two different colors in the next scene. The comic looks beautiful but edgy at the same time. It's a good visual story.
Five Ghosts originally was kickstarter funded but it is now in print. Whether you've read this or not I believe the paper copy is something to check out. It's a good story with good character work and looks fantastic. Action, suspense, science fiction and little bit of espionage makes for a great comic package. Check it out.
4 out of 5 Geek Goggles
