Rob Lake reviews The SheerGlam Conspiracy...
Fresh off of the heels of reviewing Blazer! to then having the privilege of speaking to the man behind it all - Steve MacManus. It wasn't long before I dived into Steve's novel, The SheerGlam Conspiracy. This novel not only ties into the genesis (and revival) of the now physical Blazer! comic book, but also takes a satirical look into MacManus' past working upon various comics. It's a hilarious look into office politics and one-upmanship with a surprisingly dark undertone.
The SheerGlam Conspiracy focuses on the goings-on of two comic book publishers and is set within the comic heyday of 1973. The staff of rival publishers, Goodenough Publications and Tartan Editions are at the height of a bitter circulation war with each company trying to get the upper hand on the other. The majority of the book focuses on the creation of a new weekly comic with the codename of GNP 13, and Tartan Editions endeavour of finding out what GNP 13 is.
Aside from Tartan Editions trying to find out what GNP 13 is, we also have a side story that follows a young intern of Goodenough Publications, Sinead. We join Sinead as she works her way up the ranks of Goodenough Publications. It's through this journey that the young intern runs into the colourful cast of characters and into the path of the titular, Gloria SheerGlam. To say anything else will ruin the finale of the book, but it's both shocking and makes you think. If anything the ending could have had a few more pages to let everything sink in. But considering The SheerGlam Conspiracy is the first in a series of planned books, MacManus has left us wanting more - and needing those answers.
Each character is also exceptionally thought out. In an almost bizarre way, some of the characters are extremely relatable to those found in everyone's workplace. I can relate to both the indestructible Godric Goodenough and the promiscuous Miss Thisbe within previous workplaces of my own. It's also interesting to try and guess who the characters are possibly inspired by - answers on a postcard.
The pace of The SheerGlam Conspiracy comes at you pretty fast. No sooner are you introduced to a character or notion, something else is thrown at you. It works exceptionally well and if anything highlights the often frantic world of producing a weekly comic strip. MacManus also gives us a great look into 1970's culture as references to Bally Shoes, Babysham and Teamaids are referenced throughout.
After the events of The SheerGlam Conspiracy are over, MacManus gives us the dummy scripts to GNP 13 - The Sheerglam Conspiracy's Mcguffin. Of course, GNP 13 turns out to be the recently IRL published, Blazer!
As someone who read Blazer! before reading the SheerGlam novel, it made me appreciate Blazer! even more. To read these scripts to then see Steve's work in the flesh was brilliant. Everything is as close to, if not perfectly replicated from these dummy scripts into the actual Blazer! comic itself.
Both The SheerGlam Conspiracy and Blazer! are best read as a pair. To see the troubled history behind this one of a kind comic, to then read the comic is a great experience. MacManus crafts a tale that comes at you like a freight train, and most certainly contains subtle references to the veteran's rich history within the comic book industry. With a sordid cast of relatable and well fleshed out characters, The SheerGlam Conspiracy could effectively work in any workplace. Add in the now physical existence of GNP 13 aka Blazer! and you've got the complete Goodenough Publications Vs. Tartan Editions war in the palm of your hands.
Rating 10/10
An ARC was kindly supplied by The77 Publications for the purpose of this review.
Rob Lake - For more comic book and video game chat why not follow Geek Culture Reviews on Twitter and Facebook @GeekCultureRev
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