Flavor Issue One

Here's a classic review that I did in 2018 but never got around to posting it. 

Enjoy...

Written by Joseph Keatinge

Art by Wook Jin Clark
Published by Image Comics

Comic books about cooking are becoming a growing segment of the industry. While it barely registers as a blip on the radar when compared to horror, sci-fi and superheroes, the number of culinary themed comics has practically jumped 100 fold compared to 5-10 years ago. 

The newest epicurean comic book on the market is Image Comics’ Flavor. It’s about an aspiring chef name Xoo. Her father is suffering from some unknown malady and cannot run the family tavern anymore. However, because Xoo is both underage and unregistered as a chef, having to drop out of the culinary academy to help her family, she risks losing everything due to unfair bureaucratic policies. 

In the mysterious walled city in which she dwells, chefs are the ultimate celebrities. Their masterful dishes are a prized commodity and everything revolves around food. Because of the great value put on food and the artists who make it, a restaurant with an unregistered chef will not do. So the city’s governors have decreed that Xoo’s uncle, Geoff, become the family’s new caretaker and chef de cuisine. 

Flavor is an interesting mix of manga, dragon-slaying fantasy, and Stranger Things mystery. Joseph Keatinge’s story is intriguing. I definitely don’t have much of a clue where this book is going, especially as a sinister entity is added to the recipe at the end of this issue. Just what is hiding beyond the walls of this city is very creepy. But in terms of the bureaucratic elements that seek to prevent Xoo from becoming the community’s next master chef remind me of the young adult series Brave Chef Brianna. 

My favorite element of this book is the artwork by Adventure Time: The Flip Side’s Wook Jin Clark. Xoo’s city is jammed packed and busy. I love how the artist gave it such a life and well-lived character. Plus, his renderings of the dark entity and the city guardsmen are both quite spooky.

Lastly, it wouldn’t be a culinary comic without some added element of cooking involved. Each issue is going to come with bonus material from noted food scientist Ali Bouzari. When I teach cooking techniques to my students during my day job as a chef instructor, I try to incorporate elements of the science behind the cooking. You can’t truly understand a recipe without comprehending the chemistry and biology of the ingredients and equipment you are utilizing. In the first issue, Bouzari is interviewed by Keatinge about his philosophy on food and what’s in store in further issues. I for one cannot wait to see what the Bouzari has got on next month’s menu.

The characters in Flavor appealed to me greatly. The mystery of the city made me want to read more. But the added elements of food science and technology by Ali Bouzari has me hooked on this new series. If cooking is an passion, hobby or just a mere interest- and comic books are your thing- you are going to love this series. The book is rated Teen but overall, it has a universal appeal that should entice older readers as well. Plus, you might learn a new cooking trick or two to add to your next culinary experience with family or friends. 

Flavor #1 debuts in stores and digital media on May 16, 2018.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.