Rira
Reviewed by David O' Leary
Rira
Cover Date: Bealtaine (May) 2009
Story by: Various
Art by: Various
Colours by: Various
Covers by: Bob Byrne
Publisher: Comici Gael
Cover Price: 2.50 Euro
Reviewed By: David O' Leary
I must admit something before I review this book. While growing up I wasn't the biggest or most enthusiastic learner of my native tongue. Gaelige is a difficult language to learn and a lacking of an understanding or appreciation of the language can in later life be almost embarrassing. I honestly have had little use of my native tongue since leaving school and actually had more use for my German than my Irish in my line of work. I used a copy of 'This Man This Monster' a classic Fantastic Four story translated into German to practice for my oral exams in that subject in my final year of school. I own more German language comics than Irish comics. The only reason for that is, until now, there hasn't been an Irish language comic and after issue one it has made some impact on me.
I was actually a little intimidated going into the reading of this comic. My Irish speaking skills are not great. I can read it just fine and in my head I can translate it okay but the fact that I was holding an Irish language comic was a little daunting. I was wondering to myself how on earth I was going to review something I couldn't read but to my utter amazement, my brain dug deep and with only a little help from an online dictionary for some words I read it just fine. The great advantage about the medium of comics is that the visuals tell a lot of the story so combined with that and my now Rain Man-esque recollection of my language I was blown away by how much I enjoyed this book.
The book opens with a Tony & Alberto story from renowned European creator Dab that was brilliantly positioned at the start of the book as the intentions of the production team come across loud and clear. It was a genuinely laugh out loud piece and it was followed up with another Tony & Alberto sketch. The gags were visual and also from the text the jokes were easy to understand even with my understanding of the language.
Tony & Alberto is joined by Leo Passion Rugby which is another strip that has it's European roots and is translated As Gaelige for this issue. The continuing translating of European material will be a common theme of the book.
What followed was a procession of material from both established creators and newcomers alike. I was in the gist of it, getting a good feel for the book when I was stopped dead in my tracks by a piece from Mike Lynch and John Cullen. What struck me most about it was the art. This is John Cullen's bow into the medium and his art really stuck out at me. It immediately reminded me of a story Jim Steranko did years ago with Nick Fury Agent Of S.H.I.E.L.D. His art had that ultra detailed, almost out there look and for a moment I was taken right out of the book as it was something that was on its own in look and feel from the rest of the title. Even now, writing this, it stands out in my mind from the rest because of this. Cullen really is one to watch for the future.
There is a lovely mixture of strips in this book that test your reading skills in the language but there are some great stories in here that are just visual based. A lot of the book has moments that are memorable and on completion of the issue I had a great sense of achievement for the team behind this book as it really came together well.
I now have an appreciation for Gaelige that I have not, if ever, felt before. Adulthood brings a whole new admiration for some things that you would dismiss as a child and I can only thank Aidan and his team for that opportunity. This is an amazing achievement that all aboard should be proud of and I will forever be indebted to this team for reawakening my sense of pride in a language that I had long since dismissed.
Rating the Issue
| Story Story: Overall 9.33 Concept - 10 out of 10 Plot - 9 out of 10 Dialogue - 9 out of 10 |
Art Art: Overall 8.33 Styles - 8 out of 10 Storytelling - 9 out of 10 Colour/Tones - 8 out of 10 |
Importance Importance: Overall 9.66 To the Title - 10 out of 10 To the Company - 10 out of 10 To the Medium - 9 out of 10 |
Reviewer Bio
Name: David O' Leary
email: idwfan@yahoo.co.uk
Been reading comics: for about 12 years now.
Review Bio: I am a 26-year-old Hotel Manager from the west coast of the Republic of Ireland and think this is a great way to talk to others about this cool medium. I am a husband to one wife and father to one girl (so far).
Favorites: ONI's Whiteout, Vertigo's Scalped and Garth Ennis Preacher and Punisher in Trades. In comic form I am reading a lot of Marvel and a bit of IDW, Dark Horse & WildStorm among others.
Website: Sorry, I don't have one!
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