I hope writer of new Titan comic, Newbury & Hobbes: The Undying doesn’t mind, but I’m going to sprinkle some of my own personal tales of comic writing in this review. Its done with the best of intentions and I hope writer George Mann appreciates where it leads to.

It’s hard to get your comic noticed these days. Its true that it’s easier than ever to make a comic and get it in front of readers through the internet and self publishing avenues, but more people putting out comics means more competition to get people to read your comic. When I released Sparks a few years ago, I contacted every review site I could to try and get some hype. Good or bad, I wanted feedback, but I also wanted to get reviews out to potential readers who would hopefully be convinced to use their hard earned money to buy my comic. Most sites ignored my request because I was no one and I had an unknown property that wouldn’t bring them ad revenue. I was forever appreciative to the sites that did say kind things about Sparks because it meant the world to me, so I hope when I started doing articles and reviews for Break The Fourth I could return the favor. I could take these comics that really need the support and give them a spotlight. They might be good, they might be bad, but I think either way a fair and non biased review is key to at least get people reading about the book.

So when noted prose and comic writer George Mann wanted reviews for his new book, Newbury & Hobbes I was eager to accommodate. I didn’t really know much about the comic, I just saw a creator trying to promote their own work and wanted to help out any way I could. I was more than surprised to find a comic that seems to be tailor made for me.

In many ways, Newbury & Hobbes pays tribute to some classic British TV and novel fiction. This isn’t a bad thing, as a writer myself I think paying tribute to something while doing your own thing is key at times. It’s clear from the early pages of the comic by Mann and artist Dan Boultwood that the main influence of this comic comes in the form of the Avenger’s. No, I’m not talking about Marvel’s premier team, I’m talking about the popular British TV show of yesteryear. Before James Bond was introduced to the world at large, the world’s favorite gentleman spy was John Steed and his partner Emma Peel, the precursor of many female leads that would come over the decades on the small and big screen as well as in fiction. This comic stars a male (Newbury) and female (Hobbes) pair of investigators and starts with them on one of their cases. From then on the comic is a fascinating mix of mystery, adventure and lots of steampunk.

It’s unclear if this is an alternate Britain in the year 1903, but the technology features is very steampunk heavy. I’m not sure if these are exclusively the inventions of Newbury & Hobbes or this is just the world, but it’s used in very cool ways. There is a cameo by Queen Victoria in the issue that lends this to alternate reality, but it could also be implying that our own history might have dark hidden secrets. In this issue the pair are undergoing two investigations: one featuring a gang of steampunk robots and the other a corpse that has been genetically altered into a giant hulking figure. The two stories are likely connected, but it isn’t clear as the issue builds towards a cliffhanger. The issue is dialogue heavy but moves at a decent pace and is consistent with the genre that the comic also seems to be paying tribute to, a genre I adore and have tried (unsuccessfully to date) to try to do a comic about, classic crime fiction.

There are elements of Conan Doyle, Christie and more on display in this comic and I was lapping it up with every panel and every page. It’s clear that Newbury & Hobbes have a very longstanding history together and the issue makes multiple references to previous adventures the pair has had. On further research, the pair have had three novels (all written by Mann) prior to this comic, novels I intend to digest at a rapid pace following reading this issue.

The art by Boultwood is animated to keep the tone fun and exciting without it ever bordering on the ridiculous. I don’t think I’ve seen his work before, but it matches the tone and setting of the story perfectly. It gives the comic a light atmosphere among depictions of murder and mystery that add to the overall feel that the Avenger’s influence can be gleamed from. I adored this comic to bits because it feels like it has everything in one lovely package that I adore. Opinions may vary, but I’d highly recommend fans of mysteries or steampunk to track this one down. There are very few pure mystery books out there at the moment in comics, I think it’s a great genre that books like this and Dynamite’s Nancy Drew are pulling off brilliantly.

I hope people give this book a chance because I had a blast reading it. It reminds me so much of what I love about fiction as a reader and reads like something I might write myself. To George Mann, I give the highest compliment I think one writer can give another.

I wish I’d thought of this first.

Grade: A+