A review by mikorin
Blackbird #1 by Fiona Staples, Sam Humphries, Jen Bartel

3.0

i was really excited to start this comic, i have been following the artists work for a while now and i love jens illustrations and lgbt merch an awful lot. since i couldnt buy the physical volume yet, i figured id buy the first chapter digitally, its only a few bucks. i was promised magics, sisterhood and aesthetics. while the art is really gorgeous i feel really let down by the rushed story telling. there is a brief flashback to the main characters life as a kid where she experienced something magical then we get a huge time leap to current times. the flashback was meant to show us that she has some supernatural powers, but these are simply glossed over, with no explanation if she stopped having these powers or what. she is obsessed with forums about magic users, works a shitty job while crashing at her sisters coach and is a drug addict. she is acting awful towards her sister who is actually trying to help her and i was basically given zero reasons to have any sympathy for the main character or to care about her sister. the sister getting kidnapped by a magical creature had zero emotional impact. and it just felt stupid that when the main girl finds a magic bracelet she just immediately Knows how it works because she read it on some online forums? i really like the concept but the writing could use some more groundwork. and while i love jens solo illustrations and style the characters expressions sometimes feel a bit exaggerated.