A sweeping, coming-of-age fantasy about living your dreams, literally. In her dreams, Lucy is the hero of all her favorite stories, living each night as a grand adventure. These journeys will teach her more about herself and the real world around her than she ever expected!

The magical girl trope is one that has been spreading throughout comicdom for years now delivering some excellent series and becoming a genre by itself. So, it’s surprising when you get a new entry into the genre that impresses and has something new. Lucy Dreaming is both.

Lucy Dreaming #1 by writer Max Bemis with art by Michael Dialynas and lettering by Colin Bell is the newest entry and published by BOOM! Studios which has firmly planted its flag as a publisher of comics aimed towards tweens and in that genre orbit. They seem to have another (cult) hit on their hands with this one as it takes the “magical” aspect and puts a sci-fi spin on it all.

We’re introduced to Lucy, a young girl who’s in her early teens and while not quite an outcast, one that would rather have her head in a book than interacting with those around her. She lives in fantasy though isn’t consumed by it. It’s clear from what she says about her world that she’s quite grounded in it all. One day her eyes change color and things get all weird as her dreams become more like reality and in this case one that looks a hell of a lot like a certain popular science fiction franchise.

Bemis continues to explore perception and reality in this comic series (something he’s done more than once in previous ones and a theme he seems to enjoy). And he does it all with a wink, nod, and some humor. That humor and twists as Lucy “takes control” of her dream left me smiling and chuckling out loud a bit as Bemis needles that popular franchise mentioned above.

Lucy Dreaming‘s first issue is all set up with little explanation but it’s done so in a way that’s fun, quirky, and relatable. We get Lucy and understand where she’s coming from for the most part. I can’t say if Bemis nails the “voice” of a tween girl but what he presents is fun and doesn’t feel like it’s off in that department. It’s this dream world that’s the mystery and one we’ll quickly learn about in the second issue judging by the end.

The art style by Dialynas is fun and fits a lot of the other series BOOM! has been putting out. For so many numerous indie comics, they certainly have a style about them and that’s not a bad thing as it’s an art style I enjoy. The designs are interesting and unique but also bring a familiarity about them all that includes the dream and real world. There’s also some nice framing of scenes as we are introduced into Lucy’s world with the background adding in the details of it all.

The lettering stands out as well as a lot of the introduction of the series is done in a “journal” like way. It’s a lot of text and there’s something about it that blends that internal monologue with captions. It clicks in a weird way and different lettering wouldn’t have pulled it off.

I don’t know what I was expecting with this comic series but I want more. BOOM! has another fun one on their hands that hopefully becomes an ongoing based on the first issue. There’s so much potential here and a voice about it all that’s fun and entertaining, exactly what comics should be.

Story: Max Bemis Art: Michael Dialynas
Letterer: Colin Bell Cover Art: Michael Dialynas
Story: 9.0 Art: 8.75 Overall: 9.0 Recommendation: Buy

BOOM! Studios provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review