Fence Redemption #1 // Review
Aiden sleeps with a teddy bear. There’s a reason for it, but he doesn’t exactly feel the need to explain. He’s seen as a bit of a flake, but there are quite a few other concerns lurking around the corners of Halverton Training Camp in Fence: Redemption #1. Writer C.S. Pacat returns to the popular fencing-based sports comic with artist and co-creator Johanna the Mad. Color is lent to the page by Joana Lafuente. The personal lives of characters are explored in a little more detail in the opening issue of another potentially enjoyable series with an ensemble of students.
Aiden is considerably late to wake up. It’s suggested that Aiden’s teammate Harvard just wants to know that he’s taking the team seriously. (Harvard’s a team captain who always seems to have time to help out around the edges of his own training.) Aiden lacks a whole lot of concern about the situation. It’s only Day 3 of training camp. There’s plenty of time for things to come together for the team as training continues. A not-so-friendly visit is on the horizon. Students are soon to arrive from Exton--the lean and polished rivals of Halverton.
Pacat finds a nice balance between the specific culture of fencing and the standard school-and-sports ensemble drama that has come to dominate anime and manga serials over the years. The sports drama formula can get pretty tedious if there isn’t enough thrown in around the edges of a story to give it a distinctive flavor. As of the first issue, Pacat DOES provide some basic information on the rules and tactics of fencing that feel like they might lead somewhere, but it would be REALLY nice to see them filter in a bit more to the heart of the drama. As it is, the fencing aspects of the story seem to be happening on a completely different level than the rest of the drama.
Johanna the Mad has a beautiful sense of fusion between traditional manga style and more traditionally non-Japanese comic book art. The emotional resonance of the story feels suitably brought to the page, but oddly enough--the fencing that SHOULD be the heart of the visuals looks a bit vague and disinterested in the first issue of the new series. Aside from a few basic diagrams during training, there really isn’t a whole lot of thought brought to framing the actual fencing in a way that would look intriguing. Lafuente’s color DOES add visual appeal to the page in a way that makes everything appear more engaging.
Pacat and company continue to craft an appealing story with a fun group of characters. It’s too bad that the fencing aspect of the story isn’t a little more integrated with the ensemble drama. It’s the first issue of a new Fence series, though. Pacat has plenty of time to get into it in the months to come. It’s the beginning of a new training camp. Things are going to feel a bit stiff and awkward early on.
