Review -- GHOST ZERO

Ghost Zero
Art by David Flora
Written by David Flora
Ghost Zero takes a lot of elements that I have always appreciated, and puts them together in one nice package.
The story is first and foremost a pulp hero one, very much along the lines of The Shadow and The Spirit, and those tales have always been a favourite in terms of action and straight forward story telling.
Writer David Flora has added a layer though, with the hero being a ghostly one. The element of the mystical is excellent here, with the character having just a bit of a Ghost Rider 'feel' without coming anywhere near ripping that character off.
Of course this is only issue one, so there are a ton of questions about the character's complete background, but isn't that what you want, readers to ask questions that they'll return to future issues to find answers too?
That said, Flora does weave a darned good story here too, one rich in background material, and one that firmly establishes mysticism as part of the world in which Ghost Zero resides.
Flora said Ghost Zero arose from several influences.
“The Ghost Zero story is a combination of all the things I enjoy personally; ghosts, pulp stories, and small towns. The idea came from a time in the late '90's when I was writing collaborative pulp stories with an online group of pulp enthusiasts,” he said. “We each came up with a pulp-inspired character set in the '30's, and they formed a group called 'The Midnight Society'.
“The character I created was called 'The Revenant', and was essentially the Charles Pallentine character that serves as Eddie Quick's ghostly mentor. I didn't actually draw the first panel of the webcomic (which was originally called 'The Revenant’) until 2007. So it took about seven or eight years for the idea to come together.”
Flora himself suggests writing is his strength as a comic book creator.
“For me, the art is harder than the writing...which means I'm probably not a good writer,” he said.
That is a statement I disagree with. This man can write a fine pulp comic story.
Flora added, “I usually see the scenes in my head, like a movie. So, while I can remember the dialogue from the movie and write it down, it's much harder to get the art on the page to look like what I see in my head. Most of the time, I'm disappointed, but it's worth it when you occasionally hit the mark.”
In terms of art, Flora does not have a dramatic flare of some of today's comic artist, but his black and white renderings fit the genre, and era of Ghost Zero well. You have the feeling you are looking at a comic drawn a few decades ago, and that works just fine for me.
Ghost Zero is Flora's first work, and while that may show on the art side a little, it does not on the writing.
“I've been drawing superheroes all my life. I guess it was inevitable. My wife commented that Ghost Zero 'seemed to spring to life from nowhere,' until she saw my older drawings and illustrations,” he said. “Like anything else creative, it comes from work spread out over years.”
Flora said as an artist he is learning as he goes.
“Like I said earlier, I've been drawing superheroes since I can remember drawing, especially creating my own,” he said.
“I did get a bachelors degree in Studio Art, but most of what I know I've taught myself. The markers I use, for example, are a result of my attempt to strengthen the shading in my work, which I felt was a weak point.
“That's the wonderful thing about practice, it turns a weakness into a strength.”
The really good news is that there is more Ghost Zero to come from Flora, apparently lots more.
“Oh yes, it's definitely an ongoing series. I have plans to involve Eddie (and Ghost Zero, of course!) in the Korean War, and then on into the '60's,” he said. “Currently, I'm writing a 3-issue story arc called 'Escape from the Vigilante Crypt.' and putting it on the web at http://www.ghostzero.com/.
“It will later be collected into print by Moonstone Books, who publish great pulp stories.”
Flora also has other ideas percolating.
“I'm also currently developing another 1950's pulp/sci-fi story around a character called 'Doc Monster' that I will be submitting to DC Comic's webcomic imprint, Zuda.” he said. “You can see that develop at http://www.docmonstercomic.com/.”
Certainly with the great start to Ghost Zero following Flora's work is a must. Go online and order this one. It's a great tale.

-- CALVIN DANIELS

-- Appeared on Yorkton This Week WebXtra