A few more Zees I haven't added yet

Adam Hicks


Stephane Roux


Ted Naifeh

Zatanna #1! About time, right?

Zatanna #1
Written by Paul Dini
Pencils by Stephane Roux
Inks by Karl Story
Colors by John Kalisz
Letters by Pat Brosseau
Published by DC Comics
Review by Lan Pitts

"The world's a scary place. If I can show people a friendlier aspect of magic, it benefits everyone, mystic or mortal." -- Zatanna

Created over four decades ago by Gardner Fox and Murphy Anderson, Zatanna has been a somewhat A to B-list character, having a few mini-series and one-shots sporadicly through the years, but never has had her own ongoing series. I find that a bit odd, but thankfully Paul Dini has remedied the situation and brings us everyone's favorite sorceress to center stage with her first series, simply entitled Zatanna.

Having moved away from the dark shadows of Gotham City, Zatanna has found a new home in San Fransisco with a steady gig, but of course a normal day goes awry when she's confronted by Detective Dale Colton who needs her assistance in a mass murder investigation. A very particular investigation. Reading a witnesses mind, the culprits are revealed to be led by well-known mystic by the name of Brother Night (no relation to Mother Night). The horrific acts of violence and sorcery play out while we get a feel of the villains at large and who they are. Zatanna decides to take matters in her own hand and pay Brother Night a visit to confront him on the situation and she easily takes on his cronies. Dini has supplied some great dialog between Night and Zatanna, including a bit on why she aligns herself with teams like the Justice League and doesn't look down on the human world. Though we also see that Night may not be the big picture and something more sinister and darker lay in nightmares and shadows.

As a Zatanna fan, I loved how Dini presented Zatanna in this issue. It shows her life as a super-hero, a stage show performer, and a protector of the human realm. She's many things to the DC Universe and this series could be one to watch for with Dini penning a character he has adored for years. If anybody was going to bring Zatanna into an ongoing series, I'm glad it's him.

The art team assembled on this book is astonishing. When I heard Stephane Roux was on board on the art, I was a bit concerned since I had only been aware of his cover work and wonder how his style would transfer to actual page layouts. Yeah, no worry here. Roux's construction and flow make it a real page-turner and just fun to look at. Of course since Roux is aided by the incredible talent of Karl Story on inks, it's sharp, clean and dare I say flawless. John Kalisz's colors fit everything just right as well. From the opening page with the spotlight, to how Night's den appears. You get a real sense of the world right down to the feel of Zee's cape to Night's skin.

Dini has set up numerous things in this first issue, and I love how easily accessible it since because it doesn't bog down with continuity and we get an idea of who she is, as I mentioned earlier. It's a great start to what I hope will be a fantastic read for years to come. It's been a long time coming and it was worth the wait.

Making Magic with Stephane Roux AND some new pieces.

Stephane Roux might not be a house hold name, but is a star defintely on the rise. Having done primiarly covers in his career, he's finally in his first ongoing series with Paul Dini, Zatanna!

Earlier last week, Newsarama talked to writer Paul Dini about the upcoming Zatanna series. This past weekend at MegaCon, we had a chance to talk to the famed artist about the project, his insights, and what lies ahead for DC's Mistress of Magic.

Newsarama: Who approached you first about doing the Zatanna series? How did you get involved?

Stephane Roux: I was at a convention, I can't remember which one, but I was talking to Dan [Didio] and he was approaching me about another project they had at the time and later he had said "you know we have Zatanna" and I just jumped for it.

Nrama: What drew you to her? I mean, she doesn't have a lot of merchandise and is relatively unknown to most non-comic fans, why her?

Roux: First of all, she's not one of the prominent characters, but there's something cool about a magician that is also a superhero. I always felt the character was a bit underexposed. Now, I'm not saying this character would have a long of run as say Wonder Woman has, but every character at DC should have that sort of chance to be put in the spotlight for a while. I also think the character has the potential to be the next Dr. Strange for all I know [laughs].

Nrama: What exactly will the series showcase? What's in store?
Roux: So far with the issues I've worked on, she's dealing with mystical forces with something that anchors through the real world because some of the bad guys are trying to take over, and there will be new characters and villains, and she's there to stop them from doing so. She's not alone, there will be a cop that goes to her because they have a case where mystical forces are involved. So that's how the book starts.

Nrama: What is it like working with Paul Dini, who is such a Zatanna enthusiast?

Roux: I actually just met him a few days ago, before then we had been exchanging emails. First of all, let me just say I'm a huge Paul Dini fan, you know, the Batman animated series and everything. Coming from animation, it was a shock to me what he had written and a few years later I'm working on a book with this guy and on his favorite character, it's just great. He's a guy that is very exciting to work with and I hope I can be as efficient and inspiring as he is with the scripts.

Nrama: What's it like going from a cover artist to constructing panels and pages, is there a different mentality?

Roux: Oh, there's definetly a different mentality. You know coming from animation and doing a lot of storyboards and just warming up so many times on personal projects over in France, so the storytelling aspect is not new or strange to me, it's just now we are doing it for a purpose. Working on pages is a different process because you have different filters to make sure you get it right, but it's not just my story to tell. I will say working on covers is something exciting to do because you get to tell a story and sometimes it's just your own. Pencils, inks, colors, etc.


Nrama: You have a great inker on the Zatanna team: Karl Story. You have to admit, he makes everybody look good.

Roux: Oh yeah, definetely. I'm so happy to have him on board. When it was asked who I would like as an inker, his name came first and they told me I can have him. He does justice to the pencils and I'm more than happy with his work.

Nrama: You've only got three issues planned so far, has there been ideas been tossed around for the future? Or are you taking your time because you do feel new to page construction?

Roux: Exactly, just taking it one step at a time. I need to talk to Paul about the villain we are introducing in the first arc, but will come back sometime later and it's a very exciting thing. It's all in the process of creation right now, but it's only going to get bigger and better.

--------


I've been waiting for this piece for a while. Since like, November. Finally got a scan and will hopefully will be sent here soon. Matthew Dow Smith, ladies and gentlemen.