[review] Sfeer Theory and other works by moonsheen
This is NOT an April Fools joke. I thought about it and thought about it and I can't come up with anything funny for April Fool's, so, yeah, no jokes from me. As usual.
So I'm going to talk about moonsheen.
She's my roommate. She is also awesome incarnate. Don't let her lie to you. She's great to live with because she's friendly and easygoing and fun. I have never met another individual more creative.
So now for my completely unbiased review of her work.
The best things about moonsheen's work are her world-building and characters. Even in her short stories you can tell there is so much more to the world - and the characters - than you are being told. She doesn't write exposition; she naturally expands the world through internal monologue, dialogue, and description. Her stories will always contain a colorful cast in a colorful world, and she doesn't need illustrations to give you a clear picture of everything around your reading experience.
Sfeer Theory - collaborating with long-time partner halcyonjazz, this comic is just a gem. The main character has an incredible, distinctive voice - not just because of his accent but his body language and clear personality expressed by his inner monologue. I love the duality of what he thinks of himself and others and how he actually acts around others. Intelligent, underrated, and vibrant, it's beautifully illustrated and beautifully written. The story is just getting into gear now. I look forward to seeing what happens next every week!
Alby and the Manticore - written for imaginarybeasts. I love this story. I love this story so much I did a podcast of it. It's brilliant and interesting and fun. The main character has so much heart, and the supporting cast is full of life. Again, everyone has a distinctive voice; the world-building is incredible, and done so subtly that you'll hardly know it. Modeled off the tale of the Mouse and the Lion, this is the tale of Alby discovering himself through an incident so incredible you really have to read the story.
Naomi and the Dream Eater - for the upcoming 'dreams' issue of imaginarybeasts, Moonsheen has imagined a world with familiars where the main character has a Baku - a dream-eater - for a familiar. What I particularly enjoy about this story is the sense of history between the characters, how we explore the characters further through their dreams, and the exciting climax.
Daniele and the Lion - there's a naming trend here, I realize. XD;; Written for the Shosetsu Bang*Bang, this is about Italians who touch each other (in the words of halcyonjazz. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I haven't read it. Obviously something to rectify when I get home from work!
Cry Havoc - I don't know when you'll be able to read this, but when you do, it'll be on the shelf of your local bookstore. No, seriously. Follow this link to see the artwork halcyonjazz has done from Moonsheen's inspiration (you might have to friend the comm to see them).
Cry Havoc is a foray into scifi (well, space opera), with telepathic characters fighting space wars. Once again there's a beautifully imagined world in place here. Intense battle scenes pepper the heart of the tale, which is a boy in the army who has lost his sister, the best friend he doesn't want to have, and the ten or so members of the supporting cast which are all deeply explored, well-characterized fellow teammates. And in the backdrop is an incredible conspiracy that you won't expect ...
In short, read Moonsheen's works. You won't regret it. Seriously, awesomest awesome to ever awesome.
And she's my roommate. (Hah hah! >p)
So I'm going to talk about moonsheen.
She's my roommate. She is also awesome incarnate. Don't let her lie to you. She's great to live with because she's friendly and easygoing and fun. I have never met another individual more creative.
So now for my completely unbiased review of her work.
The best things about moonsheen's work are her world-building and characters. Even in her short stories you can tell there is so much more to the world - and the characters - than you are being told. She doesn't write exposition; she naturally expands the world through internal monologue, dialogue, and description. Her stories will always contain a colorful cast in a colorful world, and she doesn't need illustrations to give you a clear picture of everything around your reading experience.
Sfeer Theory - collaborating with long-time partner halcyonjazz, this comic is just a gem. The main character has an incredible, distinctive voice - not just because of his accent but his body language and clear personality expressed by his inner monologue. I love the duality of what he thinks of himself and others and how he actually acts around others. Intelligent, underrated, and vibrant, it's beautifully illustrated and beautifully written. The story is just getting into gear now. I look forward to seeing what happens next every week!
Alby and the Manticore - written for imaginarybeasts. I love this story. I love this story so much I did a podcast of it. It's brilliant and interesting and fun. The main character has so much heart, and the supporting cast is full of life. Again, everyone has a distinctive voice; the world-building is incredible, and done so subtly that you'll hardly know it. Modeled off the tale of the Mouse and the Lion, this is the tale of Alby discovering himself through an incident so incredible you really have to read the story.
Naomi and the Dream Eater - for the upcoming 'dreams' issue of imaginarybeasts, Moonsheen has imagined a world with familiars where the main character has a Baku - a dream-eater - for a familiar. What I particularly enjoy about this story is the sense of history between the characters, how we explore the characters further through their dreams, and the exciting climax.
Daniele and the Lion - there's a naming trend here, I realize. XD;; Written for the Shosetsu Bang*Bang, this is about Italians who touch each other (in the words of halcyonjazz. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I haven't read it. Obviously something to rectify when I get home from work!
Cry Havoc - I don't know when you'll be able to read this, but when you do, it'll be on the shelf of your local bookstore. No, seriously. Follow this link to see the artwork halcyonjazz has done from Moonsheen's inspiration (you might have to friend the comm to see them).
Cry Havoc is a foray into scifi (well, space opera), with telepathic characters fighting space wars. Once again there's a beautifully imagined world in place here. Intense battle scenes pepper the heart of the tale, which is a boy in the army who has lost his sister, the best friend he doesn't want to have, and the ten or so members of the supporting cast which are all deeply explored, well-characterized fellow teammates. And in the backdrop is an incredible conspiracy that you won't expect ...
In short, read Moonsheen's works. You won't regret it. Seriously, awesomest awesome to ever awesome.
And she's my roommate. (Hah hah! >p)