Comic Book Review - Alice Ever After #1

Rob reviews Alice Ever After #1...

Lewis Carroll's 1865 children's adventure Alice's Adventures in Wonderland has had as many adaptations, as the world has revolved around the Sun. The world of 'Wonderland' and the titular Alice can - and have been - portrayed in many ways. Whilst the Disney animated movies portrayed Wonderland as a magical place, Tim Burton ventured into its darker side, and American McGee explored Alice's mental state in the video games 'Alice' and 'Alice: The Madness Returns. 

Looking to venture down an entirely different rabbit hole is BOOM! Studios with their take on the Wonderland fable. Written by Dan Panosian, Alice Ever After takes the classic 'Wonderland' formula and adds a refreshingly dark, grown-up gritty twist...

Panosian writes his Alice as quite a troubled individual. She's struggling to adjust to life in the real world and is longing to venture back into the warm embrace that Wonderland provides. To escape into this fantasy land, Alice has stumbled down into the world of illegal narcotics, which has also gained her the attention of some of London's undesirable types. As her family attempts to "help" Alice, Panosian's opening takes a very dark turn. 

So far Alice Ever After #1 is quite a slow burner, however, this shouldn't put you off. The slow pace helps to establish Alice as a character as we get to explore her psyche. On the surface, she shares some traits with Lewis Carroll's version, but underneath the two are vastly different. Panosian has however quickly established that Alice is the black sheep in her family, which sees a very complex relationship with her father. 

The narrative is pushed along by Alice's cats - Kitty and Snowdrop. Through each page, we get to see their insight into Alice and her world, as well as their understanding when it comes to pass events. It's quite an interesting way to portray the story and certainly helps build the strange world that Alice is a part of. Another interesting addition is that some of the real-world cast share traits with those in Wonderland. This is more prevalent come to the end of the issue, with the menacing Queen of Hearts ushering Alice into the "Sacred Heart Hospital". Just how this all fits together is up for debate. It could mean that Alice's past adventures have been one big drug-induced hallucination, or could we see Wonderland starting to bleed into the real world? Either way, it certainly casts doubt over any prior understanding of the fable. 

Away from the narrative and Alice Ever After feature the artistic talents of Giorgio Spalletta, with colour work by Fabiana Mascolo. Both the illustrations and colour work help create this mysterious world within a very grounded Victorian-era London. Spalletta's character work is spot on as he focuses' on expressions and body language to drive the impact of Panosian's script. Mascolo also perfectly captures the dark, grimy feel of the Victorian streets with plenty of brooding shadows and cool tones. This is in direct contrast with both Alice's red dress, and the warmer tones of the interior scenes. 

Wonderland is also given a small tease as Alice momentarily escapes from her troubles. There's a great shift in an artistic style that helps to ascertain that we're somewhere far away from the gritty London streets. It's certainly "different", and does an amazing job in building just what this world is. 

Lettering comes from Jeff Eckleberry, who utalises a clear, bold, and somewhat cartoon-y feel to his chosen font. The small portrait of both Kitty and Snowdrop is a brilliant addition which subtly shows you which cat is narrating.

All in all, Alice Ever After is a great opening act. Dan Panosian and the team have the beginnings of a dark gritty tale that's no doubt going to go to some very weird and wonderful places. If you think you've seen everything that the looking glass has to offer. This one will make you look again. 

Rating: 9/10 

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