REVIEW: The Little Mermaid #2

Written by Meredith Finch
Drawn by Miguel Mendonca
Colored by Jorge Alberto Cortes
Lettered by Ghost Glyph Studios
Cover by Mike Krome and Ula Mos
Publisher: Zenescope
Release Date: 03/25/2015

Nope, not the Disney version, we are in Grimm Fairy Tales territory. That said there are more than enough recognisable elements in the issue from any number of previously seen stories.

This issue serves two porpoise, sorry, purposes; continuing the origin piece, possibly of Erica, whilst also showing her current predicament. As such it does both quite well, my initial reaction was wanting more of the present day storyline, but logically, you do need to see where you have been to understand how you got to where you are.

The story, in this issue , is brought to you by Joe Brusha, written by Meredith Finch, who I have to say, does a better job than on Wonder Woman where she wrote WW saying “awesome” Â totally out of character. The characters sound as you’d expect, from whining Prince to the trapped Erica up to the evil mad scientist. Plot wise, I wasn’t surprised by anything in this issue. I am not saying that is Finch’s problem par se, but with the tale (was tempted to write tail there!) so well known a couple of changes would have been welcome.

The art is supplied by Miguel Mendonca Â and whilst it is somewhat tame in comparison to other Grimm books, everyone does look like they have stepped out of “Body Beautiful”magazine. Yes, I know that is part of the charm of the Grimm books and if that is one of the reasons you like their books, you may well be disappointed. Â The art has clear lines and is consistent throughout. Â I will say that the Wicked Witch in this story did remind me of Lady Death. Â The colours, from Jorge Alberto Cortes, look great, both above and especially under the sea. Â It can always be a challenge to make the ocean floor look different to say Aquaman and Namor’s Atlantis and whilst not wholly successful (tell me that is is not Aquaman!), it does look gorgeous and full of vibrancy.

I am sorry to say, that despite the excellent production values, which may lead me to try another Grimm book, I won’t be picking up issue #3. This has nothing to do with either Finch or Mendonca, it’s just I have seen this story too many times for this version to hold any water.

[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]

Author Profile

Johnny "The Machine" Hughes

I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow

Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network