Kameelman #2

Posted: Wednesday, June 11, 2003
By: Darren Schroeder

Cover of Kameelman #2

Creators: Ron Randall (P), T-Bone (W), James Taylor (I), Teena Anderson (L)
Publisher: A1 Oregon Publishing
Address: P.O. Box 1324, Lake Oswego, OR 97035, USA
Price: $2.99 (US)

A group of friends film a skydiving routine; one of them worries about whether to sleep with her boyfriend. Her friend decides to invite Zack to meet the boyfriend in the hope he will be able to use his chameleon powers to get a true impression of the guy. Later that day Zack is shocked to learn that his mother has invited Zack's arch nemesis for dinner.

It's hard to avoid the feeling that the writers of this comic are out to instruct the readers how to live a wise life. Characters talk out their problems, listen to what other people say and try and help. Nothing much wrong with that, though it makes for a rather self-satisfied bunch of good folks. The excitement in this issue all comes from the artwork, with Ron and James doing a nice job of making the skydiving scenes look great on the page. There's some seriously metaphysical imagery going on as one of the skydivers daydreams about flying across the world solving environmental problems. It's very slick stuff, with an attractive front cover and attention paid to having well laid out text pages and such inside.

Zacks got some interesting powers, shame he's a bit of a whiney brat. That's probably not being fair to him. It isn't his fault he has to act really really angry with his mother without being able to swear. Sentences in bold text like You call us a family but then you do something to destroy my whole life!!! just don't make him seem a nice guy. And that mother, seriously not with it as she holds her chin and contemplates her son's angry tiff. Duh!

Apart from the falling sequences this felt like a pad out comic, setting up things for the next issue without actually giving the readers much to digest this time. Nice to see some planning ahead, but the writer might have taken his eye off the ball.

In a Word: Light.


Falling swan



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