Emma Withington reviews Labyrinth: 30th Anniversary Special #1…
Celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the beloved Jim Henson fantasy film with stories from inside the magical walls of the labyrinth. Featuring fan-favourite characters like Ludo, Hoggle, Sir Didymus, and a few surprises, this special celebration collects for the first time all of the Labyrinth Free Comic Book Day stories along with new tales from Eisner Award winner Jonathan Case (The New Deal), Gustavo Duarte (Bizarro), and more!
SEE ALSO: Check out a preview of Labyrinth 30th Anniversary Special #1
Should Ludo bring his rock friends fishing? Is The Worm’s relationship advice worth Hoggle’s time? Can Shinjee the Goblin fill humongous shoes? These are just some of the issues facing your favourite Jim Henson creations in their daily lives…
Labyrinth 30th Anniversary Special #1 is a 48 page issue featuring seven short stories set in the kingdom of the Goblin King, five of which were previously released as Free Comic Book Day issues. The two new tales, “Gone Fishing” and “Humongous Two”, are brought to you by Gustavo Duarte (Bizarro) and Jonathan Case (Green River Killer).
In Duarte’s “Gone Fishing” Sir Didymus is unimpressed by his fishing companion, Ludo, who is incessantly playing with his rock friends in the river. Duarte is known for his ‘silent comics’ which rely mostly on body language and are sparing with dialogue. This comes across here in a visually crisp and colourful series of panels that captures the expressiveness of the characters, but contains a little more dialogue – Sir Didymus is involved, so making him silent is nigh on impossible! In Jonathan Case’s “Humongous Two”, it’s time for Shinjee the Goblin to pilot the Humongous Two, but is he ready? Presented in a classic 80’s comic book style it is gritty, earthy in tone, and is – my new favourite word – onomatopoeiatastic, in a fabulously over the top battle sequence.
The remaining tales, you may have encountered already, involve a day in the life of Sir Didymus, Ludo’s escape from the Labyrinth, and Hoggle’s attempt at finding love – a personal favourite, which is essentially a running gag with an excellent punchline and provides the only new character revelation in this anthology. All of these short stories are presented in a wonderful array of styles. In particular Corey Godbey captures a fantasy storybook art style which is soft, immersive, and is reminiscent of Mouse Guard and aspects of the Mice Templar.
Labyrinth 30th Anniversary Special #1 is a series of heart-warming tales that hearken back to childhood memories of Labyrinth – or in my case a late initiation into Labyrinth at University; I was thoroughly enlightened – and succeeds in transporting you back into that world. It is a fitting anthology for such a well loved cult property, following fan-favourite characters such as Ludo. Ludo gets the majority of air time in Labyrinth 30th Anniversary Special #1, but I couldn’t help yearning to see an appearance from Jareth and his absence is felt here. Contextually it makes sense, as all of the stories are very much separate from the human aspect of Labyrinth and focus solely on the ancillary characters, but it still feels like something is lacking without an appearance from the famed Goblin King.
Labyrinth 30th Anniversary Special #1 is a beautifully presented anthology of tales, revisiting the world through lovingly crafted short stories and some of your favourite characters. It doesn’t entirely consist of new material and lacks in the absence of Jareth, but in this year of 30th anniversary celebrations is a must have for fans of Labyrinth. It will not disappoint in quality and is highly entertaining regardless. Expect a case of warm fuzzy feelings.
Rating: 8/10
Emma Withington – Follow me on Twitter
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Originally published August 10, 2016. Updated November 14, 2019.
