Phineus is a long running comic book series drawn and written by Barry Linck.  It tells the tale of a powerful mage, named Phineus, and his wife, Sara, who together fight monsters, demons and other occult baddies.  The various collections of Phineus stories can be found on ComiXology.   

This review will only cover the first installment of The Hollow Earth Saga published by Old Dying Kitty Comics.  Based on this singular issue I definitely see potential in this series.  Fans of magical and occult adventures would be satisfied quite nicely.  You have demon monsters, dwarfs, warrior priests and mysterious hooded villains all in just one issue.  I was pleased to see how this comic weaves so many sci-fi/fantasy elements together into a cohesive narrative.  

All that being said I did find myself tripping up a bit as the story progressed.  This may have not been the fault of the writer.  As I mentioned at the beginning of this review this series has had a lengthy run previous to the issue I picked up. The action starts off right from the beginning as the main characters are in conference about an army amassing and how to handle the threat.  So I did feel a bit like I was playing catch up.  In all fairness, I still was able to discern what was happening throughout the comic.  It just felt like I was missing details.  These details very easily could have been explained in a previous issue or are to be explained in future issues.  

The pacing of the book itself is done fairly well.  Readers start from an intense conference of allies and moved right into harrowing action.  I never felt like we were stalling or simply stuck in a holding pattern waiting for things to kick into gear.  Although characters seemed compelling enough in the brief time I got to know them, I did get the sense that I needed to delve in deeper to really discern what they are all about.  Again, this could be because I’m jumping in at a mid-way point and their personalities could be very fleshed out in previous issues and will become more apparent the more I read. However, this was a decent introduction to the series, characters and mythos that Linck is envisioning to introduce readers to.

My only real complaint was the dialogue.  It felt a little stilted and forced at times.  It wasn’t terrible and didn’t necessarily take me out of the comic book completely but there were instances where I felt like a word bubble was placed there just to place a word bubble.  There was no impact or meaning behind it.   

Overall though I enjoyed my first foray into the world of Phineus.  Nothing particularly blew me away, but I still found it to be a pleasing comic experience.  I would definitely recommend it for fans of the magical and occult.  There is certainly a creative tapestry on display in this world that Barry Linck built.  One that I think will fuel very interesting stories for those who enjoy fantastical adventures. 

RORSCHACH RATING:

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Victims and Villains is written and produced by Josh "Captain Nostalgia" Burkey. Music by Yuriy Bespalov & Beggars. Phineus is property of Old Dying Kitty Comics . We do not own nor claim any rights.