This is an interesting series that takes its
inspiration from a host of literary works. The premise is that a famous author
wrote a series of books about a young wizard named Tommy Taylor. The wizard is modeled
after the young son of the writer. Before the series can be finished, the
author mysteriously vanishes without a trace and young Tom Taylor is left all
alone in the world. Now, the youngster is all grown up and must make the
Convention circuit in order to make ends meet. The real world has trouble distinguishing
Tom from Tommy.
Things get
really ugly when a man claiming to be Tommy's antagonist from the books kidnaps
Tom and attempts to kill him on a live web cam. This event will lead Tom to
discover the truth about his father’s disappearance and find out if the man was
really his father in the first place. He’ll also learn that there is a squad of
crazies out in the real world ready to either call him the messiah or to crucify
him.
If this book
seems like something you’ve read- you’re completely right. The wizards are
Harry Potter and Voldemort. Tom’s life being a combination of real and fiction
prose is taken from Vertigo’s House of Mystery. There are even elements of
National Treasure and Di Vinci Code as Harry seeks to learn the truth about his
father.
I didn’t really
like this book at first. I wasn’t sure where it was going and I felt like it
was a rip-off of several works I’ve already read. However, once allusions to
Tom Taylor and the disappearance of his father are compared to real life
authors and their troubles like Oscar Wilde and Rudyard Kipling, I was hooked.
I liked that the book tried to tie in real life events with a shadowy
conspiracy that’s trying to control the world through its authors and greatest
works of fiction. It’s been said that the pen is mightier than the sword and
this mysterious cabal is attempting to make that axiom come true.
It’s not my
favorite non-super hero comic. However, it’s something that deserves a second
chance. So, I am very willing to give volume 2 a try. Maybe it’ll become a
favorite of mine like similar works such as Fables and the mentioned House of
Mystery. It’s a little graphic, but it’s not gruesome. There are lots of
allusions to Tom as a Christ figure, but it’s not blasphemous. Plus, if this
series keeps delving into the tragic lives of other writers and uses those
events to further the plot of the Unwritten further, I’m all for it.
A rough gem that
needs a little polish. Like a TV pilot that’s not quite up to snuff, I’m
willing to give this series another round before I make a final verdict on the
quality of this series.
Worth Consuming-
for now!
Rating: 7 out of
10 stars.
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