Bonehead #1 has style to spare in this action packed extravaganza. It’s a beautiful comic with a design sensibility that I don’t see very often. It’s got an anime aesthetic in the best way possible while still being its own thing. Now I talk about style because as we dive into review, we’re going to get into some odd territory here. Bonehead is unique and has a voice that I haven’t seen in awhile. It’s a cool comic in the aesthetic sense of the word but story wise we get into some slight issues from there. For the most part they are very slight issues. I guess as they say, I’ve delayed this long enough. On with the show, turn on the lights, and let’s begin our adventure into Bonehead #1. Let’s see if I can detail my experience with this for you and have it make sense by golly.

Bonehead #1 is a fascinating comic for sure as it has style to spare.

 

My favorite aspect of Bonehead for starters is that as a comic, the energy never stops. Bryan Edward Hill‘s writing is all about keeping the comic moving at all times. It’s helped by the fact that Rhoald Marcellius‘ art has the energy to match the writing. When you’re writing in a world with a strong anime aesthetic with a technology heavy universe, energy is key. See story wise you don’t get a full picture of what you’re getting into, it’s snippets of what’s to come. The character of 56 operates as a silent protagonist outside of emoticons/emoji and gestures, with Aleph being the narrator. Marcellius has a lot to communicate art wise with 56 and through gestures helps to get him across to the reader, that’s impressive. Aleph is also compelling as 56’s handler of sorts, and that’s only loosely explained but I am at least curious which counts.

The Bonehead Helmets also play a neat role as an identifier for certain characters in the story.

(Extra points for the Daft Punk references too.)

We only know a loose bit about the villains of the piece too, The Gladiators and even then we aren’t sure what role they play. By the end you aren’t sure if they are really pure villains, though I like the technology breakdown of how they work in the book. I think that is the one thing that I keep coming back to is we only get a snippet here and there to bite into. By the end Hill gives you a solid hook to grasp onto but that middle section bounces around a lot. Marcellius is such a strong artist though that it helps to keep things moving along, quirky story but gorgeous art. Sakti Yuwono’s colors help immensely here too as the dynamic fight scenes and action sequences capture the energy within Marcellus’s art beautifully. It also doesn’t hurt that Imam Eko and Jady Ady’s letters have a cool Street Fighter-esque look to them when it counts for the battle scenes. The story may be a work in progress but art team wise, Bonehead is on fire.

Simply put, Bonehead has a developing story but gorgeous art. A quirky situation but sometimes that is how it rolls.

Bonehead is worth checking out as I think this could become a cool series as it develops. The potential is there for this to be stronger down the line. It’s a little rough around the edges right now but it has potential. Hopefully Bonehead lives up to the potential I see for it down the line. It has an amazing art team so let’s see if the story lives up to the art as this rolls along.

Story: Bryan Edward Hill Artist: Rhoald Marcellius
Colorist: Sakti Yuwono Cover Artist: Rhoald Marcellius Letterers: Imam Eko & Jaka Ady
Story: 7.0 Art: 9.0 Overall: 8.0 Recommendation: Buy

Image Comics/Top Cow Productions provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review