Review
Cecil & Tiffany Adkins
Blue Phoenix

CiCi # 1 -- Limited Edition Preview Issue

A lot of people dream of writing, pencilling, or producing their own comic book, and a few of them even do something about it. Very few of those that do something about it manage to turn out something with as much potential as CiCi, the upcoming title from Spilled Milk Comics, the upstart publishing company founded by a guy named Parker Smart. (Read our recent interview with Parker here.

When this book hits the streets, Parker is going to look very Smart indeed. Sharply written, beautifully drawn, and lavishly produced, CiCi should be able to hold its own among even comics from the Big 3. And so far, all we've seen is the preview issue!

That's right. Blue Phoenix is proud to be in possession of a limited edition preview issue of Cici # 1, which Spilled Milk gave out at the San Diego Comics Convention. If you're not lucky enough to have one, Tiffany and I have a short give-and-take below, discussing the comic's story and art. We didn't want to give too much away, so there aren't a whole lot of details here. For even more information, check out the Spilled Milk website, which is constantly being updated with new information and color artwork from the series.

Without further ado, the review...

Cecil: Let me start off by saying that CiCi is better than a lot of material that's currently being published by the big comics companies, much less the smaller, independent ones. To imagine that this book has been produced because of the guiding force of one man using his own money (and no, he's not rich, either) is nothing short of amazing.

Tiffany: CiCi has more substance and content than most comics, even from the big companies. In most big-name comics, you don't get nearly this much story. It's a good, solid story, too.

Cecil: That's not to say it's perfect. . .

Tiffany: The title is lacking. It's too simplistic and doesn't really convey the meaning of the story.

Cecil: Even though the title is the character's name, it doesn't have any immediate impact as it stares at you from the cover. (The logo is designed very well, though.)

Tiffany: Parts of the story seem pretty jumpy, too, but that might just be because it's a first issue.

Cecil: Well, I think the confusing is a part of the story. The main character's life is a complete mystery, so of course her perception of what's going on is jumbled. The writing isn't bad by any stretch of the imagination.

Tiffany: No, not at all. Parker's style has an almost lyrical quality to it, especially in the opening pages. It's very poetic.

Cecil: And, as in all good stories, it's sometimes the little things that stand out. One of my favorite parts is the recurring "twin dreams" that the clones seem to have. Very touching, but only taking up a few panels' worth of story.

Tiffany: The art's really good, but it's typical of a lot of comics featuring women as protagonists. Large breasts, impossibly small waists, all the women are incredibly beautiful. Not necessarily bad in and of itself, but it does show up all the time.

Cecil: Yeah. At first glance, a reader might mistake this for a typical bad girl comic. But it's definitely not that. There's a touching, tragic story here, a story that is bursting with potential even from the black-and-white pages of this unfinished preview issue. Did I mention that the actual first issue will be in color when it comes out? That's simply astounding. There are color images on the Spilled Milk website, and if they look as good in the comic's final form as they do there, I can't wait to see this book in color.

I think the thing that amazes me most is that the artwork is very consistent. There's a total of three pencillers here, and some books would suffer from that. I think Parker and his team should be commended for putting the book first and making sure it all fits together nicely.

Because you'll probably be hearing about these people in the months and years to come, here's the list of creative talent that went into making CiCi # 1:

CiCi is © 1996 - 2000 Spilled Milk™
This review is © 2000 Blue Phoenix