GRIDLEY #1, by Sid Quade on 7/13/23, enters an Old West world of cowboys, beasts, and wizards to find Giles Gridley looking for a new home after an unfortunate incident made him an outcast.
Credits:
- Writer: Sid Quade
- Artist: Sid Quade
- Colorist: Sid Quade
- Letterer: Sid Quade
- Cover Artist: Sid Quade
- Publisher: Sid Quade
- Release Date: July 13, 2023
- Comic Rating: Teen
- Cover Price: $5.00
- Page Count: 32
- Format: single issue
Covers:
Analysis of GRIDLEY #1:
Plot Analysis:
Welcome to the Wild West, where cowboys gamble in dusty saloons and shapeshifting creatures use magic spells to interact with the dead. If that sounds weird to you, it is, but that doesn’t mean it’s not an entertaining comic.
Sid Quade’s unusual tale centers on Giles Gridley, a shapeshifting creature, a kaftar, who was banished from his town because he sustained a vampire’s bite, and the leaders don’t want him around if he begins to turn.
Looking for a new home and gainful employment, Giles heads to the Wizards Guild in Talvit City to find work as an Ectomancer. Unfortunately, folks around these parts don’t take kindly to kaftars, so Giles has to make his way through town, seek directions, and gain an audience with the Wizards Guild boss for a job interview.
Character Development:
The majority of the issue stays squarely focused on Giles as he bears the burden of a vampire’s bite, tries to blend in (badly) with the Talvit City citizenry disguised as an ugly human, and pleads his case for a job. Sid Quade’s protagonist gets hit with one setback after another but manages to find his way through to the next milestone of his quest.
Artwork and Presentation:
Sid Quade’s artistic presentation excels in two areas – the character designs and the coloring. Quade’s depiction of a kaftar (a real-life cryptid from India) is unusual enough to grab your attention as a hodgepodge of familiar animals. Kaftars aren’t as mainstream as Sasquatch of Chupacabra, so Quade has some latitude in the design, but it works well enough.
Second, Quade’s coloring application provides an earthy texture that suits the dusty Olde West setting but is vibrant enough to pop and not look muddy.
Art Samples:
Pacing and Structure:
Generally speaking, Quade’s pacing is on point. The scenes transition well from one to the next, and the dialog-heavy scenes don’t linger exceptionally long. That said, the structure and the theme (see below) are where this issue fumbles.
Giles is expelled from his clan due to the vampire bite, but we don’t see any follow-up to the bite. He goes to the Wizard Guild simply for nothing better to do. The Wizards eventually hire Giles simply because they don’t have an Ectomancer on staff. In short, you get a string of situations or scenarios, but there’s no clear purpose or direction.
Thematic Exploration:
As of yet, there’s no clear theme, which is the other shortcoming. Giles is presented as a reactionary character who takes the next step in the next scene because external events either force his hand or present opportunities.
The Bigger Picture:
Historical Context:
As noted above, Kaftars are not a commonly recognized brand of cryptid, but there are real historical reports of such a creature. It’s described as a type of magical “hyena” and “a mystical race of shapeshifters sighted around India’s capital of New Delhi.”
Source: https://mythus.fandom.com/wiki/Kaftar
Final Thoughts:
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GRIDLEY #1 is a whimsical, ecliptic tale that mixes mythical creatures in an Old West setting with an original concept. The art has a few standout aspects, and the characters are interesting. That said, the main protagonist spends the entire issue reaction mode to whatever life throws at him, so the plot and central themes are nearly nonexistent.
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