Two worlds – review of the comic “ElfQuest”

Hearing the word elf, we will certainly have different associations. Some will imagine the proud creatures Tolkien describes, others the long-eared savages of The Witcher , and others will think of Santa’s little helpers. In the meantime, we will check what Wendy and Richard Pini offer us in the ElfQuest comic .

Another story of the elves

Years ago, when the first humans had just appeared on the then nameless world, a magnificent palace full of extraordinary creatures with long, pointed ears came to them from another dimension. They could wield magic and wanted to live in harmony with the natives. Though human-like, they are different. And these differences caused the first inhabitants of the planet to attack the newcomers, killing many of them. The two species have not lived in harmony ever since. A handful of elves fled into the forest and fraternized with the wolves, fighting together against the humans. A long time has passed since then. The Chopper stood at the head of the elven tribe. Together with his kin, he was forced by the first inhabitants of the planet to flee their forest seats. And so he went to the Wastes to find other elves. Will two different tribes live in harmony?

For children…

ElfQuestis America’s longest independent comic series. The title was first published in 1978 and is still being created today. His writers and illustrators are a married couple – Wendy and Richard Pini. Over the years, the series has had various publishers, including Marvel and DC Comics. Currently, it is in the hands of Dark Horse, and Amber is responsible for its distribution in Poland. We learn the story of elves harassed by people who have to flee their homes. They are also deceived by the trolls and end up in the desert, where they accidentally find another elven tribe. Our heroes are not much shorter than humans and are characterized by pointed ears. They can fight well, with both melee and ranged weapons, have extraordinary hearing, can communicate with each other telepathically, and their friends and mounts are wolves. The comic book is aimed rather at a younger audience. The way the adventure is conducted can testify to this. Almost every picture contains not only dialogues led by the characters, but also a frame with explanations of what is happening at the moment. It looks like a hand-run so that the recipient does not get lost in events that are not actually too complicated. And although the elves look more like those created by Tolkien or appearing in the gameDungeons & Dragons , their names were taken from the world of gnomes. We have Bura Jagoda, Joyful Leaf, Stump or Witness. Some of them also received nicknames like the Indians and hence the presence of the Seer in the Clouds or the Bear’s Claw. The most important thing, however, is the message. The creators tried to share their reflections on tolerance with the recipient. They show that racial differences are nothing wrong. Aggression only breeds aggression and does not lead to anything good. Instead, you can try to communicate and then gain mutual benefits. A beautiful lesson, especially in this day and age when the persecution of minorities and the demeaning of others because of their appearance has become so common.

Również warstwa graficzna zastosowana w ElfQuest przekonuje, że komiks skierowany jest do młodszego odbiorcy. Bohaterowie, choć stojąc obok ludzi są niemal ich wzrostu, wyglądają bardziej jak pomocnicy Mikołaja, a nie Legolas czy Ellrond. Większość uwagi rysownicy z kolei skupiają na samych postaciach niż szczegółach w tle. Kiedy już dostaniemy jakiś zarys lasu czy wioski, to wygląda on bardzo dobrze, ale niestety częściej oglądać będziemy emocje na twarzach bohaterów i wykonywane przez nich ruchy. Nie jest to może złe, bo ilustrator operuje naprawdę ciekawą kreską i podkreśla każdy detal dotyczący stroju czy warunków fizycznych postaci, ale czasem miło by było zobaczyć coś więcej niż tylko bohaterów. Na koniec należy jeszcze dodać, że cały komiks stworzony został w odcieniach czerni i bieli.

Czy nie dla dzieci?

ElfQuest powstał w latach 70. i jest pod kilkoma względami przestarzały. Wówczas nikt nie przywiązywał do tego większej uwagi, ale momentami komiks zdecydowanie nie pasuje dla młodszych odbiorców. Jak już wspomniałem, same elfy wyglądają niczym radosne skrzaty, ale jednak ich kobiety mają momentami bardzo mocno wyeksponowane kobiece kształty. Poza tym jedna z nich zostaje nawet porwana przez adoratora, który stara się siłą zdobyć jej względy. Na szczęście wyjaśniono też, że nie w ten sposób zabiega się o miłość, a kobiety same wybierają sobie partnerów.  Poza tym już na samym początku mamy tortury i kilka zabójstw. Ludzie i długousi toczą wojnę i są wśród nich ofiary, ukazane na pierwszym planie. Rozumiem, że ma to uzmysłowić czytelnikowi, do czego prowadzi brak tolerancji, ale pewnie niektórym rodzicom niezbyt by się ten motyw spodobał. Również słownictwo może okazać się momentami niezbyt stosowne. O ile przez większość czasu nasi bohaterowie oraz narrator są raczej weseli, żartobliwi i przesadnie tłumaczą wydarzenia, to jednak pojawia się groźba „wypatroszę cię jak jelenia”. Musicie więc sami ocenić, czy pozwolicie swoim pociechom sięgnąć po tę lekturę.

A classic you need to know

ElfQuest is a cult notebook that every comic fan should know. So we can be grateful to the Amber publishing house that after so many years it finally came to our country. Until now, probably hardly anyone in Poland has heard about him, and meanwhile, on its basis, an RPG, two board games, toys were created, and Julie Ecklar sang a song about him. For some time, there were also attempts to make a film based on it, and who knows if we will finally see it. As for the comic itself, its plot is interesting and has a very wise moral. An adult audience, however, can guess the development of events and not necessarily be drawn into the story itself. Additionally, the narrator’s constant translation of the events taking place on the pages may be a bit irritating. The reader will certainly appreciate the ElfQuest graphic layer. The younger readers to whom the notebook seems to be should like the comic much more. We should remember, however, that it was created in the 1970s and some content (not shocking anyone at the time) can arouse controversy today. Ultimately, however, it’s hard not to like Chopper and the other elves. So let’s wait for the second volume about their adventures.