Review – Green Manor I: Assassins and Gentlemen

Authors: Bodart – Vehlmann

Green Manor falls under Cinebook’s Expresso line of European comics, a compilation of bitesize strips set in Victorian England. At Green Manor the club members share their stories over a drink and a cigar and each one forms a strip. The setting is familiar, any of these stories could have been told in the drawing room at 221B Baker Street and the tone and general atmosphere borrow a lot from Arthur Conan Doyle. But despite lacking originality, Green Manor’s shots of mystery with dark overtones are cleverly plotted and each tale delivers a well timed punchline or twist. The book is nicely drawn in a stylized fashion and has an elegance lacking in some of Cinebook’s pulp titles such as XIII or Largo Winch. The palette is weighted towards dark blues, greens and browns and the colouring suits the storytelling well, since the few scenes set outside take place mostly at night. That this is a European perspective on Victorian England adds a quaint touch but there are no major idiosyncrasies in the storytelling to give away this fact. Since I began reading Cinebook titles last year the publisher has continued to impress with their choice of translations from the continent and Green Manor is yet another reason to try out some of their excellent books.

@gazbox