The TROLL
“” (19 pages)
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Martin Flink
Publisher: Accent UK
Cover Price: £3 / $4.95 / € 3
Playtime is magical. Literally!! It’s natural to have one’s imagination run wild. In the case of an eight-year-old boy, it involves him running from a ruminant of the vast woods that is anything but imaginary!!
Who doesn’t recall endless hours of entertaining oneself while the adults busy themselves with more serious matters? All this boy requires are a chisel, a paintbrush, and a basket. With those three items in tow, he is good to go.
A spooky sojourn through the immensely tall trees gives way to a clearing. He ascends to the top of a mound to gain better perspective. A simple throw of a rock wields the most unexpected results!! The hill is alive!! (and not with the sound of music 😉 Well, more on that in a bit.
A black behemoth envelops the boy’s line of sight seeming to cover the entire opening. The most natural reaction: run for his life! The trope is that the panic sets in and the rambunctious red-head trips over a branch and falls. This monstrosity is a gentle giant times three. He scoops the tot, puts him on his shoulder and gives him the most glorious view of the forest.
The unlikely pair are now friends. A reassuring smile from the Troll is returned in kind. To solidify the bond and express contentment, he bolts out a tune. The boy responds accordingly. The hill is alive with the sound of music >_<
Time to get back to the parental unit. What a tall tell he has to tell!!
This is the second time this year I review a silent issue. A rare occurrence in my purview of comics. Aside from the sound effects and musical notes, I consider this story completely wordless. More is said with less. The creator is reminding us to cherish those moments when we were all carefree. The concept of play has lost its appeal in the digital age. It’s high time to regain that.
The Troll looks like a mole, at least to me. The absence of words creates even more succinctness. Nothing has to be extrapolated. He is simply there. One with nature. Perhaps he is the guardian of the woods. Perhaps he has been exiled. It doesn’t matter. He poses no threat. He simply longs for companionship.
Interestingly enough, this story or a version of it first appeared in C’EST BON ANTHOLOGY #7 published in 2009. I did an extensive search on this modern classic. Martin Flink hails from Denmark. Mr. Flink’s blog site has a scanned image of two pages identical to what is within this release.
I’m mildly curious by the ‘a version’ remark in the indicia. What changes were made? I wish I could easily procure the first draft. Mr. Flink’s eponymous webpage states that he self-published his small body of work until 2010 when Accent UK accepted The MAN of GLASS. This re-telling re-emerges six years later. Luckily, I found two links for reviews from Accent UK’s site. Broken Frontier credits Down the Tubes with the inspiration behind this sublime oeuvre: Mr. Flink heard a recounting of his young son’s sojourn through sylvan.
Mr. Flink provides two different angle shots – the tilt on page one showing the boy’s elation; the lengthy lanky trees circling the boy without a peek-hole on page four. The paneling is standard but somewhat unique in that the solid lines are replaced with squiggles.
The three inserted panels on page five provide a photographic progression to the boy’s climb.
The nine panels on page ten create an effective framing technique: the Troll looks down at the nuisance and his enormous hand is proportionate to the rest of his body if it were to be fully depicted.
There are five full pages. Together, they tell their own story leaving obvious gaps. The double-page spread near the end illustrate the immensity and awe of the outdoors. As ginormous as the Troll is, even he can’t touch the sky. The pale blue emits peace and serenity associated with the yonder.
Mr. Flink’s pencils have a gentleness to them despite the rugged outlines. The colours are primal and appropriately earthy for the resident of the Danish wilderness. This is a sharp contrast to the boy’s raging red hair, white tee, and fair skin.
The lettering for the two noises produced echo in the wide open space.
Once again, I’m delighted to have delved into an unknown entity. This modern classic had me widen my eyes and stretch my smile. The Brits rightly had dibs on this mini-tome since it was released at the MCM Manchester Comic Con in late July. It’s a damn good thing it has made its way across the pond.
I give this modern-day fairy tale a perfect ten!!
This review was made possible courtesy of my local comic shop:
