Top 100 Comics of 2014 - #40-36

D4ve #3

Writer:

Ryan Ferrier

Artist:

Valentin Ramon

Colours:

Valentin Ramon

Lettering:

Ryan Ferrier

Publisher:

Monkeybrain Comics

Signs of first world problems:

• In the morning you've run out of your favourite spread to go on your toast.

• You have to travel to get to work.

• D4VE Issue 3 is 'merely' as good as the two prior issues.

Looking at this, it looks as ridiculous as when I first typed it. Because it is. This issue of D4VE is just as good as the others preceding it. But when that means it's in the top 10% of comics created ever, it makes me look like I'm ungrateful. Hell, it makes me feel it. It's almost a churlish thought that such a funny, charming, well written and illustrated and all over brilliant piece of work is ever called 'just' anything.

Perhaps it's because D4VE surrounds itself in a quick fire jokes, so the story seems to have less weight like all comedies do. Perhaps it's that Ferrier and Ramon are, like the best of any people in their fields, making the whole series seem so effortless on their part that it seems easy to pull off. So easy that it won me over to its charms in one panel. One panel.

Yet looking at the small details put into each panel, it's obvious someone they poured their souls into this. The world of D4VE is a living, breathing thing that exists beyond the panel borders, robots living their own lives, free of the midlife crisis of an office robot who remembers when he was so much more. A robot who thinks he can stop an alien invasion from the last remaining living species in the galaxy himself. It's a world where Scotty, despite coming off an assembly line, in an individual. It's a world I can't wait to revisit, that make me realise just how great the internet can be. A place that inspires me to write a half mad rant instead of a proper review in an attempt to quantify genius.

In other words, just buy D4VE already. You won't regret it.

You can buy Dave #3 or subscribe to the entire series via Comixology.

Reece is doing the robot. Any questions or queries, you can reach him on @ReecemJones.

Geek-o-Rama received a copy of this comic for the purpose of this review. All thoughts, comments and opinions are those of the individual reviewer.

D4VE #2

The second issue of Ferrier and Ramon's robotic comedy finds D4ve's life take an unexpected turn for the better, just as everything else gets worse...

Writer:

Ryan Ferrier

Artist:

Valentin Ramon

Colours:

Valentin Ramon

Lettering:

Ryan Ferrier

Publisher:

Monkeybrain Comics

Continuing the trend established in the prior issue, D4ve's mix of humour, tragedy and dream sequences underpin a looming threat on the horizon.

Now let's start with the good: D4ve has been chosen to be a key part of a new initiative to seek out new energy resources for robot kind (beyond that I have no idea, as our protagonists rather humorous take on the meeting is just a few words interspersed with *waffle waffle waffle*). Now the bad: his wife is leaving him, he's been left with a son that was delivered just this morning who's already a teenager. Oh and there's an alien armada that just touched down with what seems like a less than wonderful intent.

Because of all this happening it felt a bit like D4ve #2 was treading water a bit when it came to plot compared to last issue. To make up for this though, we have a upswing in humour, mostly general in nature but the funnier stuff focusing on D4ve's misfortunes and frequent flights of fancy.

I said it in my last review, but Valentin Ramon's art really does go from strength to strength. Be it by the strength of the collaboration or off his own back, the world of D4ve is bursting with small details that make the world feel alive and larger than just what we see on the page. Just the throwaway sight gags alone would be enough to launch other comics, but it all adds together with the humour, characterisation and plot to make one of the best comics I've had the pleasure of reading...well since D4ve #1.

Add in THAT ending and well, I'm just glad I've Issue 3 to look forward to soon. I don't think I could wait any longer!

You can buy Dave #2 here, or else subscribe to the entire series via Comixology. For the insanely good price of $0.99 its worth it.

 Reece Morris-Jones can be reached on twitter @reecemjones. He's not a spam bot. Honest.

Geek-o-Rama received a copy of this comic for the purpose of this review. All thoughts, comments and opinions are those of the individual reviewer.

D4VE

Quirky, smart and rather charming, D4VE explores what would lead a robot to find himself trapped in a dead end office job...

 Writer:

Ryan Ferrier

Artist:

Valentin Ramon

Colours:

Valentin Ramon

Lettering:

Ryan Ferrier

Publisher:

Monkeybrain Comics

D4ve is an ordinary guy. Ex-army, he sits in a boring desk job day dreaming of his more adventurous past, all the while trying to avoid attention from the grumpy boss. His wife doesn't understand him and he's got a kid on the way. Oh, and he's a robot. Did I mention that part yet?

Of all the things that really made me smile in D4VE (and trust me, there were a lot), it's the small details like that that really got me, along with the use of brilliant comic timing. Mining humour out of the odd situation of a robot going through an existential crisis is not a scenario I thought could work, but D4VE #1 hits each point perfectly. The opening issue sets up the universe and explains just why it is hyper intelligent robots are doing boring office jobs; it turns out once you kill everything else, there's not much to do. Though it seems that there are some aliens that disagree and are planning something.

It helps that D4VE, for all his flaws, is a very likeable character. A charming loser, his current non-entity status hides a yearning to do what he feels (in this case, literally) he was created for. That inability to fit in with the rest of the world whilst still being the everymen adds him to the roster of tragic heroes like Regenald Perrin and Father Ted.

All of this though wouldn't work without the art of Valentin Ramon. Quite how I've never heard of him before I have no idea, because his artwork and colouring is incredible, effortlessly switching between the downfall of empires to the drab layouts of an office space. That a two man team can put out one of the best comics around at the moment is mind boggling and means that D4VE #1 is the top of my list of best comics of the past year.

I can't wait to read issue 2.

You can buy Dave #1 from Comixology here

Reece Morris-Jones spends some of his free time doing the robot. To read more failed attempts at understanding what a pun is and other less important stuff , message him on Twitter @reecemjones