Two-in-One Review: Tall Tails Randy Lander and Don MacPherson explore a wild kingdom full of swordsmen and sorcerers in Tall Tails from Dream Weaver Press. Don: Furry comics are a niche in the industry I really haven't delved into before. Anthropomorphizing characters in fiction that would otherwise feature human characters has a major following among a small but fiercely loyal group of fans, and when Dream Weaver Press sent along copies of the first collected edition of its Tall Tails series -- as well as the fifth issue -- for review, I welcomed the chance to take a look at this side of the industry and comics storytelling. Randy: Whereas we have a fairly large "furry" contingent at the store I work at in my day job, so I'm fairly familiar with this side of the industry. Of course, as a reader, I'm really only familiar with it through exposure to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, so Tall Tails is pretty new to me as well. The Collected Tall Tails Volume One and Tall Tails: Thieves' Quest #5 published by Dream Weaver Press written by JD Calderon illustrated by Daphne Lage Don: Tall Tails is about two bands of warriors and magicians sworn to protect the same young boy... but for different reasons. Cromwell and his men aim to return the boy -- a prince -- safely home to his royal father, while Cromwell's cousin, Ravenwood, leads a groups of honorable knights who need the prince to identify the individual responsible for the theft of a talisman of great power. Randy: I'm impressed that you managed to boil it down into something so simple. Of course, that leaves aside the numerous villains, side trips and machinations going on in various subplots. Tall Tails is a complex, perhaps even overcomplicated, piece of work. There is a very large cast on both sides of the story, and Calderon has captured the feeling of epic fantasy with this sweeping cast. Don: Calderone has certainly instilled a sense of the epic and the fantastic in his intricate plot. The conflicts crisscross throughout the book. The villains are numerous and act from a variety of motivations, while the heroes -- and there are plenty of them -- are often at odds with one another as well. He has managed to instill some key characters with sharp, distinct personalities as well. My main problem with the book, though, is that the black-and-white art, combined with many similar character designs, makes it difficult to tell which characters are which. The two main heroes -- Cromwell and Ravenwood -- look a great deal alike; their distinguishing characters are a bit too subtle. Several key shifts from one scene or plotline to another were confusing, as it could take several pages before one figures out which members of the cast were being featured. Randy: On this we agree. Even on the color covers, the two main leads are visually similar. In fairness, they are cousins, and close ones at that, so a family resemblance is to be expected, but Lage doesn't do the reader any favors by making the various characters look so much alike. I would also say that having the rats look so similar to the other characters makes it difficult to figure out who is doing what. Although you're right in that the writing, which shifts scenes without any obvious cues and without much prelude, is partially responsible as well. Don: Aside from the need for greater variation in the character designs, Lage's art is strong. She conveys action adeptly, and she captures a sense of the fantastic and medieval in the setting and characters nicely. It's a shame this book isn't in color, though, as it would add a great deal to the clarity of the visual side of the storytelling. Randy: Perhaps, although the colors on the covers, particularly of the single issue, are a little garish, so I'm not sure that would do them any favors. Also, Lage's art does have some wonderful detail, and I suspect that might get lost in the color. I particularly enjoyed her work on young Andrew, whose youth and enthusiasm comes through in his every expression, and who is set aside from the rest of the cast easily by means of his small size. Would that such simple cues were available for all of the cast. Don: In the end, though, I found the anthropomorphic characters to be distracting. Their cute look conflicted with the more serious tone of the story and the occasional bloody, violent melees. Mind you, that's not a criticism of the creators' efforts, but merely my reaction to the furry genre. Turning the characters into animals doesn't seem to add anything to the effect of the story, and in fact -- for this particular reader -- detracts from it. Don: I've never quite understood the "furry" following, to be honest, and I'm afraid that after reading Tall Tails I still don't. This is a solid fantasy story, a bit lacking in transitions but basically pretty strong, and the biggest weakness it has is that the various animal characters are difficult to tell apart. I'm not sure, but I suspect that if the characters were human, I would find them easier to distinguish. As you say, though, this is a personal reaction, not a criticism of the creators' efforts per se. Those who enjoy work in this genre as well as the fantasy genre would be very wise to seek the book out. For more information about Tall Tails, visit Dream Weaver Press. Email Randy and Don comments about this review, or discuss it on the Fourth Rail message board.