I finished this in one day. My page per day average soared. I finished and wanted to start all over again.It's been a couple years since The Adventure Zone, Balance Arc finished its podcast and moved on. I'm still not over it. But as the feeling of the podcast grows more distant, these comics that cover the different arcs within the Balance show, become better. Because the show got better over time as the narrative deepened and the McElroy brothers (and dad) got more deeply into the characters they were creating.Petals to the Metal is really where this all started to happen within the show. When Griffin McElroy took more control over where the story was going, and side characters who could have been throw- aways became fan favorites. This was the arc where Justin McElroy conjured Spirit Steed and instead of a horse, we got a fabulous, deep voiced binicorn Garyl. I mean, no one but the McElroy's could have pulled this off.Petals to the Metal deepens the mystery of the red robes and the Bureau of Balance. It illuminates the characters but casts huge doubts over their mission and the narrative. It's an excellent turning point in the series. The only thing to regret is the next installments are not immediately available. And, naturally that since my 8 year old is now into graphic novels he mistook this for his own and we had to have a serious chat about the "F" word.
5/5 Duh.
What can I say? There's a gorgeous synchronicity between The Adventure Zone podcast and the graphic novel. The graphic novel manages to take the whimsy and sweetness of the McElroy brothers and carry it into a visual medium. Murder on the Rockport Limited follows Magnus, Merle and Taako as they try to recover a second grand relic. A Bureau of Balance reclaimer, Leeman Kessler, has gone missing after checking his luggage onto the Rockport Limited. In the luggage is the relic, and our three adventurers must get it back. But nothing is that easy and the Ruff Bois have to work hard to get it back. And solve a puzzle at the same time - with a strong assist from kid detective Angus McDonald. It's a lovely way to relive the more than 70 hours of audio the McElroy's created. I know that's not much for a review but it's hard to really grasp all the things of a graphic novel.
5/5 Stars.
Last year around this time, I promised a friend of mine I'd go see a live show of a podcast she had fallen in love with. I am a casual listener of podcasts, meaning I'll catch them when I'm in the mood, but that's not often. I prefer audio books after all. But in the spirit of camaraderie, I began listening to The Adventure Zone podcast. Essentially, three brothers and their dad play dungeons and dragons. Hilarity ensues. My friend's enthusiasm, and constant texts asking "what episode are you on now," kept me going through the first couple episodes when I wasn't really sure what I was listening to. I'd never played D&D before and had never really had the desire to. How could listening to other people play be more exciting than actually playing yourself? Somehow the McElroy boys and their father answered this question with their sharp wit, hilarious banter, and above all, excellent story telling. What began as a one-off detour for the family turned into a 69 episode quest of three adventurers, Elf Wizard Taako, Human Fighter Magnus Burnsides, and Dwarf Cleric Merle Highchurch. Each arc had the trio finding a "Grand Relic." An object of immense power sought by evil-doers. And well, I'm not giving away the rest of the story. Go listen already.I know this may sound a little too fantasy for some, but honestly the character relationships and the overall story wound so tightly that I jettisoned all other hobbies for the last twenty episodes and treated it like a brand new initiate trying to speed through the first four seasons of Lost. It goes without saying that the live show was amazing. I still think of TAZ often and even though they've moved on to another story in season two of their podcast, I'm kind of not "over" the original. So thank goodness those geniuses decided to put the arcs into comic form. The Adventure Zone: Here there be Gerblins is the first arc from the podcast. "It won't work" some said. "Moving from an audio to a visual medium is too hard" said others. They were all wrong. The comic works on a comic book level because the strength of the story was so great. They've tightened where they needed to tighten. Removed a lot of superfluous jokes while still keeping the humor. Even the dungeon master appearing in the upper corner from time to time feels totally normal. I'm so glad they have already decided to do the second arc from the show: Murder on the Rockport Limited because the story just gets better as it goes on.
5/5 Stars.
