Two-in-One Review: The Invincible Ed He's a teenager. He's a geek. He's just a regular kid. And he's invincible. Meet The Invincible Ed. Don: He's an animator who's turned his attention to self-published comics, and his inaugural effort features a story about super-powers and a kid who's bullied at school. Nope, it's not Mike Kunkel and his Herobear and the Kid... it's Ryan Woodward and The Invincible Ed. Randy: Woodward comes from work on Space Jam, The Iron Giant and Osmosis Jones and has now turned his talents and ideas to creating a self-published comic. And while there are broad similarities to the situations of Herobear and the Kid and The Invincible Ed, Woodward's creation stands on its own as something new and intriguing. The Invincible Ed published by Summertime Comics written & illustrated by Ryan Woodward Don: Rising crime rates and mankind's increasing callousness has given the Council of Galaxies cause for concern, and they decide humanity needs a little help to get it going in the right direction. In other words, it needs a hero. An alien sociologist named Nod is sent to Earth to select a champion, and he picks a high-school football player who has a penchant for picking on a classmate named Edward. Woodward presents the reader with a fairly typical super-hero origin story, but it's got a great sense of humor to it. Mind you, while this story boasts a strong super-hero riff, it doesn't seem like Ed's going to end up in a spandex suit and setting up an Ed-signal at police headquarters or anything. Even so, this first issue read more like a prologue than a full comic book. It's quite clear where Woodward is headed with the plot early on. It made for a predictable read overall, but fortunately, what will come next isn't nearly as easy to guess. Randy: Woodward jumps from intergalactic council meetings to high school pretty easily, and while Ed's troubles at high school are anything but routine, the idiosyncratic elements of the plot didn't hurt the strong characterization of bully and bullied that is at the heart of the story. I'll agree with you that this first issue is a little predictable, and that it does read more like a prologue, but I think that's intentional, and I think it comes from Woodward's background. In an animated cartoon, this would be the first few minutes before the commercial break or standard credits, and it's hard to imagine not coming back to find out what happens next. Don: We seem to be seeing more and more animators turning their attention to comics in recent years (Bruce Timm, Darwyn Cooke, Kunkel, Michel Gagne, Scott Sava). Here, Woodward's animation background comes shining through in his comic artwork. Bright colors, a strong sense of motion and an irreverent tone are be found in just about every panel. His style reminds me of Kunkel's, but I'm reminded of other comics artists as well, like Chris (Steampunk) Bachalo, Sam (Wolverine/Hulk) Kieth, Duncan (Superman fill-ins) Rouleau and Jim (Grrl Scouts) Mahfood. Woodward employs a simple style, but at the same time, he gives those simple visuals a strong sense of texture and depth. Randy: I was definitely impressed by the artwork in this book. To be honest, I wasn't as crazy about the colors, which could have used a bit more subtlety, but the energy in the artwork is incredible, considering that the story is using still sequential images. Through the placement of panels and the variation of "camera angles," Woodward really gives the reader a sense of motion and helps to express Lance's obnoxiousness and Ed's somewhat beaten-upon attitude. To his credit, though, Woodward makes Ed a likable guy with his own strengths, despite his role as the perennial victim, and I expect we'll see more of that strong side come out as the events at the close of this issue continue to resonate. Don: Overall, this is an impressive debut from a new talent in comics. His art serves as a solid foundation for future efforts, and should he try travelling on paths less taken, he should turn some heads with his plotting and characters as well. For more information on The Invincible Ed and Ryan Woodward, visit www.summertimebooks.com. Email Randy and Don comments about this review, or discuss it on the Fourth Rail message board.