“Grimmiss Island” (6 out of 10) Drawn by Art Baltazar; Written by Art Baltazar and Franco; Published by Dark Horse; Available March 11, 2015.
“Grimmiss Island” takes place on, you guessed it, an island inhabited by an array of tribal characters, animate plants, and gods of varying emotions. When threatened with the wrath of the Volcano Goddess the Mama Woogees use their impressive magic and hot peppers to summon Grimmiss as a sacrifice to the goddess.
Grimmiss instead courts the goddess and earns her love. As their romance heats up so does the island not only making things uncomfortable for the Mama Woogees but threatening to upset the balance of their small world.
The introductory issue of “Grimmiss Island” reads like an episode of toddler’s television programming, not offering much in the way of entertainment for anyone over the age of six, but would be a great introduction to comics and reading for the younglings in your life. I had originally given the issue a rating of five out of ten but it earned an extra point for the use of Spanish (an additional learning opportunity for the kids) and for color commentary by a pair of talking cacti.
While the first issue is a little dry and jumpy, “Grimmiss Island” has the potential to be a fun series reminiscent of the “Adventure Time” books. Here’s hoping they don’t miss the mark.