Yesterday, I'm pretty sure Marc Ellerby's Chloe Noonan: Monster Hunter Issue 2 wasn't available to buy on the Web (I checked). Today, it is. Through the magic of going to a physical place in three dimensional space in Northern England (Thought Bubble, where it launched) I read it already. I thought I would tell you that it is Good.
Chloe Noonan, if you never met her before, is a monster hunter who goes to sixth form, has ginger hair, has absolutely no super-powers and... well, she's a bit of a moody cow (in a totally loveable way) to be honest. She's in a band called Freudian Repercussions that has song titles long enough to fill a panel. You might want to go out with her, because she seems sort of like she's in your league, but she would probably keep you at a distance using a force field made of withering looks. Issue Two finds her grappling with a lobster monster bloke who's had a few too many ales and wants a girl (does he fancy Chloe? I think so).
Reading Chloe Noonan (so far, at least) isn't so much about following a plot as it is about dipping into the brain of Ellerby and seeing how things look from in there. The world he sees (or draws, at least) is charming, cynical and vibrant all at the same time. He pokes fun at pop culture while clearly revelling in it, and you can't help but enjoy it with him.
If you've ever read Ellerbisms, you already know that Ellerby has a knack for bringing instantly likeable, warm and real characters (OK, people in Ellerbisms) to the page. The inhabitants of Chloe Noonan: Monster Hunter are no different. I'm already pretty scared that if I ever meet Chloe's mate, Zoe Fox, her teeth will do something bewitching to me and I'll find myself listening to My Chemical Romance and crying at teatime.
The other thing I would say is that the polish Ellerby delivers is impressive. I see a lot of small press stuff that looks... I'll say 'rough around the edges' - not this, though. The printing and overall presentation of the issue - like in the one before it - are on a par with what you'd expect from one of the bigger indie publishers like Oni Press. I really ought to mention that you get 28 pages, compared to the first issue's 16, too.
And, can I call Chloe Noonan the English Scott Pilgrim? Oh, I just did...
You should buy this. You can do so from marcellerby.com (along with Issue One). Hopefully it will filter out into your local comic shop soon, too. Oh, and here's a preview.
In case you're interested, here are a few words about some other good stuff from Thought Bubble.
UPDATE: I got hold of Marc and he told me that OK Comics and Page45 should have Chloe Noonan: Monster Hunter Issue 2 this week, and London shops will hopefully have them next week.
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