Tales From The Flat #2

Picked this one up on the London to Brighton MegaBus Comics Festival last November when I met the creators, who were good enough to answer any questions I had about it. As you can see from the photo, this comic : a fun ride.

A part serial introduces four friends spliffing slacking their way through horrific nightmares unleashed from the local greasy meaterie. TFTF Writer Laurence Powell has a good ear for the natural wanderings of dialogue, semi-soliloquy conversation fuelled by pop culture freetime. The story too is directly enjoyable, weightlessness aside, in a building that is surprising and not unlike something Simon Pegg or Flying Monkey might produce. These have in common a formula, also approach of no shameless copying.

"I keep it in the bathroom so guests can read it when they take a shit at my house" -Roger Moore

Artist Oliver Lambden applies equal effort, creating figures crosshatched by dimension expressing nonchalance, exaggeration, futility and fear : at a sporty leisurespeed. By way of backdrops, there is expansion enough in the minimalism of line to label his worlds packaging and signs as a sugared up graffiti artists scrawl. This comic left me wanting more, eager.

Thankfully i got another.

TALES FROM THE FLAT #1

Artist has again detail in the speed and at best similarities with Neill Cameron.

From written, evidenced balance teamwork and more solid detail in background which because of the poor greyscale scan levels dirtiness in this issue looks more solid before. Theres more soul in this one too, fashioned shapes and a tight design sense. Again Simon Pegg's influence appears and there is sends some priceless laugh aloud one-liners.

For a best description of this comic, an excerpt from "Beyond the pages", a round afterword,

email modernmonstrosity@ hotmail.com

Send a check to Laurence Powell
21a Altenburg Gardens
London
SW11 1JH

£2.50 per issue inc postage and packing
and remember to include name and address.