The End Times of Bram & Ben #1 Review/Discussion

[nosocialize100]

Probably my sleeper comic of the week. The Rapture has come and taken millions of people to heaven. This issue deals with the comedic side of that fallout. Surprisingly this comic doesn’t read as if it were dealing with religion. You’d think having the Rapture as the main crisis would do that, and there seems to be a devil involved as well, but the comedic nature keeps things light enough so that the religious aspect isn’t preachy or annoying.

Co-writer and creator James Asmus does a bang up job with the pacing of this issue and while some stories might trip up on exposition and setup, this issue instead gets past that to deliver a rather enjoyable read. Part of the reason for this is the interesting premise of the book. How would the world keep going? With confirmation of the Rapture taking place, would you be able to live with yourself? Interesting questions arise from the premise alone, but instead of focusing on those things, Asmus instead keeps the dialogue and character development light.

Penciled by newcomer Rem Broo, you can’t help but love his style in the book. The pencils have a lively manner that helps imbue a sense of comedy in the cartoony nature of the book, but maintains a serious quality as well. In most cases it’s his ability to draw expressions in a bombastic way that really hammers home the duality of this book.

There's a slightly lengthier review with some pictures from the book here if anyone is interested.

What are people's thoughts on this one?

[ryanandbeard]

I thought it was pretty good. Solid B. At times, the writer tried too hard to be funny, but the backbone of the story is solid and the ending pleasantly suprised me; it was fresh and unexpected.

The art is fairly solid; Broo is no Guillory, but still, there are some beautiful panels to be seen here. I LOVE the cover.

Excited to see where this series goes.

[bionics]

Interesting that this came from a Kickstarter project. I wonder if they'll be doing more and more of that as time goes on; tons of unique talent to be unveiled that way.

I thought it was okay. Too early for me to tell yet, but a promising start. I too, enjoyed how the theme wasn't overly preachy and surprisingly neutral towards religion. I figured it would have had a snarky, atheist, "I'm so ahead of the curve" spin to it. I'll probably keep buying just to see how it unfolds.

[nsiops]

I thought it was pretty good. Solid B. At times, the writer tried too hard to be funny, but the backbone of the story is solid and the ending pleasantly suprised me; it was fresh and unexpected.

The art is fairly solid; Broo is no Guillory, but still, there are some beautiful panels to be seen here. I LOVE the cover.

Excited to see where this series goes.

^What he said. I laughed out loud and certain parts (usually the more subtle gags) while other parts seemed overtly forced. The execution was refreshing, and it's nice to see a kickstarter actually see life. I'll be sure to check out the next issue.