Warlands #1

I hate to say it, but the best part of Warlands was the hype. Touted by Wizard and courted by Marvel as one of the big up-n-comers, Pat Lee has an amazing amount of talent. His 1999 debut with Darkminds, which he both wrote and penciled, was not only impressive, but really pushed the envelope as far as style and tone (specifically color) go. Not long after Darkminds, Lee made his Marvel debut on Wolverine:Punisher. His anime-charged style and blue-washed colors struck a chord with comic fans, and it was with baited breath that we heard the news: Pat Lee had a new comic in the works. But this time, no superheroes, no sci-fi, but fantasy. Oooh, aaah! No one's ever done a fantasy comic before! Er, not a successful one, anyway (yeah, yeah, there was Michael Moorcock's Elric and the whole ElfQuest thing, but those were flukes, I tell you! Flukes!). Thus, we've been graced with Warlands. Honestly, I think we were better off without it.

First and foremost, just because computers allow you to write all fancy-like, with the flashy colors and nifty fonts, doesn't mean it's a good idea to plaster your comic with them. If I were Warlands letterer, Simon Peung, I'd watch my back, because Pat Lee would have every right to kick my ass. His (Lee's) fantastic panels are polluted with the ugliest, most distracting use of onomatopeia (that there's fancy talk for words like BLAAM! and POW!) ever seen in comic book form. Amidst Lee's dark, action-filled panels are words in colors that were previously reserved only for EXIT signs. If Mr. Peung were paying attention, he'd know that the 1960's Batman TV series went down for crap like this. This technique is distracting from the art and ruins any panel in which it's used.

That said, I really have to give credit to Pat Lee. Heavily, almost purely anime influenced, his technique is one of the most popular styles going right now. His character design is solid and composition well practiced. His only problem lies in his panel sequences, as they don't pay off as well as they could. Sometimes the order is somewhat ambiguous; the panels don't always have a recognizable flow to them.

Lastly, the writing leaves a lot to be desired. Written by newcomer Adrian Tsang, character dialogue and tone are often inconsistent. As a rookie, he's likely to have a great deal of trouble in writing what is essentially a team book. Long standing team books like X-Men and JLA often face this problem and their characters have a long history and an already determined personality. Since Warland's characters have neither of these, successful character development may be an obstacle for a new writer. As for the story, itself, it's a beginning. The primary conflict's been presented, but beyond that, anything's up for grabs.

If you buy comic books strictly for the art, then you might want to check out Warlands. Like I said, Pat Lee is a great artist. But don't expect much more. As for me, one issue was enough. If I'm lookin' for pretty pictures and nuthin' else, I believe I'll opt for a skin mag.