While there have been some impressive full-color fantasy comics, the really impressive stuff in the fantasy genre seems to be the purview of the black and white small- and self-publishers. Bone, Thieves & Kings, Castle Waiting... and Sleeping Dragons. Mason and Szewczuk's work belongs in the same breath as those much appreciated fantasy comics, and although Sleeping Dragons is more about smaller stories than one giant epic, it is definitely an example of how fantasy can be done well in comics. Mason's stories are as much about the nature of storytelling, whether it's spoken word or theatre, as it is about the fantasy genre, and Szewczuk's artwork is beautiful and detailed, comparing well to the creators of other indy fantasy.
This trade is actually two stories, one of them a single issue story and the other a multi-issue tale. The first tale is less epic fantasy and more in the fairy tale/parable realm. Interestingly, the first tale works its way into the second story as just that, a parable that is passed down and changed depending on who is telling it and where it's being told. This is the first of several blendings of Mason and Szewczuk's storytelling and storytelling by characters within the story. Much of the second story is told with unusual rhyming dialogue that marks it as coming out of a play or a storyteller's mouth, even as we the readers are watching it unfold "in present time," so to speak.
This is a clever device, one that doesn't always work but which is admirable as a storytelling experiment. Mason's stories are as much about the power of stories and fiction as they are about the actual plots of the tales, which involve dragons and other monsters and their interaction with humans. His heroes are legendary heroes who have tales spun about them for years after, and there's an epic scope, especially to the second story, that reminds one of classic fantasy like Lord of the Rings.
However, as much as Mason likes to explore the power of stories and the epic nature of fantasy, the strongest element of Sleeping Dragons is probably the characters. His main story in this tale, "Becca's Scarecrow," focuses just as much on the love between two young people as it does an invasion by dangerous foes risen again from destruction. The relationship between Becca and Philip is a "love at first sight" type of relationship, which means that it comes on a bit sudden, but Mason does an excellent job of making their instant bond seem believable, sweet and real. Mason's characters are perhaps a little too perfect, with everyone displaying a kindness and manners that is unlikely in any gathering of people, but this keeps the focus squarely on the evil of the villains rather than any dissent from within, and fits the fable-like storytelling style at work in the book.
There's an amazing level of storytelling in the work of artist Alex Szewczuk. He does ultra-detailed, crowded panels worthy of George Perez but also manages to have a style that is simple and fairly easy to follow, reminiscent of Paul Smith or Mike Avon Oeming. Just as in crime or horror comics, fantasy comics require a certain style from the artist, the ability to depict a place that is primitive and yet somehow magical, and Szewczuk has that. He actually depicts the world of Sleeping Dragons as fairly modern in terms of hairstyles and keeps the clothing simple, making it easy to relate to these characters. And a lot of the strength of his artwork is to be found in expressive body languages and facial expressions, which is important given that so much of the story hinges on Philip or Becca and how they react to situations. However, Szewczuk's modern touches fall away when you look at the simple but effective design of the city of Gan or his depiction of a medieval fair, or especially the exciting action scene that finds archers and a lone knight defending the city from otherworldly invaders.
