Classic fantasy adventure with funny animals in the lead roles - this is how you can briefly describe the Land of Ruins . This combination does not seem particularly original, and yet it has an irresistible charm.
Land of Ruins. An eye for an eye is exactly what the cover illustration suggests – a cheerful and action-packed fantasy story in a colorful cartoon setting. Apparently it’s not a big deal, yet cartoonist and screenwriter Derek Laufman tried to squeeze this concept to the last drop. The author made sure that both the universe he created and the characters that populate it were interesting and give the reader a sense of communing with something familiar, but not standard.
Raiders of lost artifacts
The title Land of Ruins is a fantasy world that (as the name suggests) has had its best years behind it. The anthropomorphic animals inhabiting it try to make ends meet, living on the remains of an ancient civilization in societies resembling a cartoon version of the Middle Ages enriched with quite common magic. One of its sources are magic artifacts hidden in abandoned castles and temples. These enchanted items are a tasty morsel for seekers such as the main characters in the comic book – the perky fox-cat Reks and the slightly boisterous Pogo pig. The reader gets to know the protagonists during their journey, during which they come into possession of a mysterious map. It is this item that will initiate a whole series of events constituting the plot of the album Oko za życia .
In subsequent notebooks collected in this volume, new characters join the team of treasure hunters. Laufman diversified the cast in terms of characters as well as appearance and abilities, creating a team straight from an RPG session. And although in such a situation it is easy to oversimplify and exaggerate, the author has created the protagonists so skillfully that they do not seem to be one-dimensional. At the same time, they are obviously a bit caricatured in terms of behavior and personality. After all, we’re talking about a bunch that looks like Cartoon Network characters crossed with Animation Adventures . Sure it’s an exaggerated bunch.
Ruins bustling with life
Despite the light tone of the story, a lot of conventionality and fun with the fantasy genre, the title land is clearly outlined, and its functioning is consistent. While reading, we get to know the various communities and races inhabiting the presented world and the relationships that prevail between them. Derek Laufman did not try to present an extensive cosmology, complex politics or multi-story intrigues, but he outlined a credible reality that was more than just a decoration and a background for the characters’ actions.
The pace of events, twists and turns as well as new places and characters appearing in the following chapters mean that the reader does not have time to get bored. Although the artist does not hide that he was mainly interested in conducting an understandable narrative with images, writing natural dialogues is also not a problem for him. The Polish translation prepared by the reliable Marceli Szpak deserves a separate praise.
Land of Ruins. An eye for an eye “- sample pages
Animations in the land of fantasy
Drawings are another strong point of the Land of Ruins . If you like “fairy-tale” settings, you cannot pass by this comic book indifferently. The author directly admits to being inspired by Looney Tunes and Duck Tales . Indeed, it’s hard to miss the impact of Warner Bros. Disney and his drawings, although it seems that you can see them also echoes Cerebus Dave Sim, dashes Skottiego Young (quick visit on Laufmana confirms that fact also inspired by him) is the last part of the style of Rayman. The characters are expressive and expressive, the frames are full of movement and action, and the backgrounds are filled with the right amount of detail not to leave a void, but also not to distract from what is most important in the illustrations. The entire comic is also so wonderfully colorful that it is a real pleasure to browse through it. The more so because it also includes a handful of extras: character designs and locations, various stages and versions of covers, drafts of boards and short information from the author about the creative process.
Land of Ruins. An eye for an eye “- sample pages
Land of Ruins. An Eye for an Eye is a very nice title for audiences of virtually all ages, maybe except for completely young children, whose amount of action and text could be a bit overwhelming. The story of Pogo, Rex and the company is somewhere between the Shrew of Destiny and the Mouse Guard, and visually it most closely resembles I Hate a Fairy Tale (minus blood and grotesque). An additional advantage of this album is the fact that it is a closed story, although it gives some hope for a continuation. Personally, I hope that we won’t have to wait long for it.
