Magical Madness #1-2

Posted: Tuesday, December 30, 2003
By: Darren Schroeder

Cover of Magical Madness #1-2

Creator: Anthony P. Anderson
Publisher: Self Published
Address: 6722 60th St. Apt. #2, Ridgewood, NY 11385, USA.
Price: $2(US) each + $1 p&p

Cadabra the ventiliquist's dummy, Adam and Albert are a travelling troupe of magicians roaming the world in their mad mobile looking for children’s parties and business meetings to entertain. The latest job is for the Dracul family. Seems the old man is in a trance and nothing the family or local church leaders do has been of help.

Fans of late night horror movies will immediately recognize many of the characters in this book. My favourites are the trio of female vampires that drift around in flowing dresses showing off their plunging necklines. Cadabra soon notices them as well and singles them out for some special attention.

Anthony seems to trying for quick fire dialogue full of one-liners I found a few laughs in the stories, especially in the spooky magic events that develop.

A lot of work has gone into the artwork with Anthony making good use of crosshatching and other patterning in the backgrounds. The illustration of characters is quite static, with lots of panels full of frontal portrays of the characters, even when they are talking to each other. It is only their eyes that indicate that they are interacting with each other. A few more profile views would help to avoid the 'Talking Heads' effect that is on offer here.

The magic combat between the different supernatural creatures is fun to watch and the overall tone is amusing, but the books lack that certain something that would make them an essential read.

In a Word: Spooky



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