Mad Cave Studios Presents: Tales From The Cave Review

Mad Cave Studios Presents: Tales From The Cave Review

If you don’t know who Mark London is, then you best recognize him because Mad Cave Studios is bringing in some awesome short page-turners from the worlds of Battlecats, Hunt. Kill. Repeat., and Nottingham. The cover for this anthology gives off spooky pumpkin king vibes thanks to the great talent of Shane Conery Volk, with awesome dark colors by Luca Romano, lead colorist of Nottingham. I love it when publishers do anthologies. It’s usually a great way to showcase new voices and new artists with brand-new perspectives that add even more versatility to the stories we all love and read.

So in the spirit of reviewing, my first pick is Keith Frady’s Not All Cats Go To Heaven, which might be a little biased, but the title plays a clever childhood tune to one of my favorite movies growing up. The Lion God might not approve of all dogs going to heaven, but he might sanction the worthy on the way to the Gardens of Solitude, which is where we find our battle-hardened warrior cats heading. Falstine accompanies Diara and Aquinar up an enormous tree to discover the legends of the garden are true.

But what does it take to get in? Faith? Skill? The stories of mythos literally take on the biblical tale of the Garden of Eden to play with the idea of what it would take to get in if it were so tangible to the living now. The only thing that stands in their way are Umbra Raiders. But to find out what happens and how the trio of cats rally together, you’ll need to grab a copy for yourself. I love that the story challenges Diara to be less isolated and more trusting while hardening Aquinar’s faith and making Falstine less of a coward.

The art in Battlecats has always been the quality of fantasy you’d expect when looking to lose yourself in a vibrant adventure. Battlecats is definitely one of my personal favorites, and if I had to recommend anyone looking for their next far, far away, then I’d say Valederia is the rebellion you’d want to join, and you can grab a copy of Battlecats Volume 1 directly from the Mad Cave site or check with your comic store and place an order.

The Gods of Olympus descended upon New York to really rule over you. How would people Spearhead a solution for harmony? Would people fill the streets in protest with slurs of anti-worshipping idioms? Would some try to broker peace out of fear or necessity? Well, the other side of that coin drops as the goddess Athena makes her way to an adjourning committee of mortals who await to hear from her, but she doesn’t see them as equals.

Who else but Athena would Zeus send to entertain mortals, but the tip of his spear? Despite the protesting, Athena’s trip to Town Hall downtown was in vain as The Assembly staged a kuo, but do we really have to talk about how that ended? Kill. Hunt. Repeat. is the best interpretation of how the Greek Parthenon meets the modern-day world there is, hands down. It’s fun, sassy, action-packed, and chalked full of a little something for everyone.

If you haven’t been following along, then check out Hunt. Kill. Repeat. Volume 1 and get to worshiping, but be careful; Cicero hears all.

Last but not least, we’ve got The Witch of Winter Hill from Nottingham, written by David Hazan and beautifully illustrated by Shane Connery Volk. I really loved the transitioning in some of the later pages, as the so-called witch is burning at the stake. David, without knowing it or not, really combined a sense of cinematic symmetry while dropping the exposition in between such a Shakespearean-like tragedy. The colors placed on the pages of this story are so surreal, that it’s almost as if someone has painted them onto the page itself.

Luca Romano definitely makes Nottingham feel like we’re getting a Brothers Grimm tone inside the town of Edwinstowe. This story sees Sherif Blackthorne, Sheriff of Nottingham, meet with Ealdorman Harlowe to address the town of Edwinstowe’s recent murders, the last of which was a member of the beloved Merry Men. For those who don’t know much about Robin Hood, he wasn’t just a Disney animated movie; in fact, the term Robin Hood is actually a slang phrase used among commoners and lawmen when referring to criminals.

Robin Hood’s earliest known literary appearance can be traced back to the work of William Langland in 1377. Langland’s writings consisted of a series of rhymes, which historians speculate may have served as ballads or songs describing the real-life leader of the Merry Men during his lifetime.

Not having read much of Mad Cave Studios Nottingham’s series, The Witch of Winter Hill, really sold me on going back to the back issues to catch up. As for the event’s leading Blackthorne to find the person responsible for murdering those pouring fellows in Edwinstowe, well, you’ll just have to grab a copy of Mad Cave Studios Presents Tales from the Cave at your local comic store or your favorite online comic vendor.

This was such a great collection of stories, and we got to see so much new and returning talent. It’s definitely with the ticket price, folks. Don’t forget to support your local comic store or visit your favorite artists and creators at cons. As always, stay geeky, share the network, and don’t forget to catch the latest on Fueled By Weird.