SPLICED COMICS /
ISSUE 04
REVIEW / I KILL GIANTS
I Kill Giants
by Ray Whitcher
(And tug at heartstrings)
PUBLISHER / Image comics GENRE / Fantasy WRITER / Joe Kelly ARTIST / J.M. Ken Niimura
I
VERDICT / 9
118
have spent the last 20 years reading comics
and graphic novels. Admittedly, half of those
years were just me looking at the pictures, but
still, I was involved with them in one way or
another. In all that time, only two have ever
managed to make me genuinely and sincerely
cry - We 3 and I Kill Giants.
be delivered as: "Why yes, it is, but some of it
is honest about the fact that it's only trying to
make money by thrusting breasts, explosions or
exploding breasts in your face."
That's where IKG is so very different, from the
way protagonist Barbara is realised to the
very heavily metaphoric scenery
Comics are enigmatic beasts
that is depicted in this young
that rely very heavily on the
girl's world and even the
combination between visual
titular giants; every scratchy
"...every scratchy
(visceral) and written content
line, splash of ink and
line, splash of ink and
to drive their narratives. So,
overt stylisation is so
overt stylisation is so
understandably, it's really
resonantly beautiful in
difficult to find a perfect
its simplicity, that it can't
resonantly beautiful
combination of the two,
help but be engaging.
in its simplicity, that
but sometimes, some true
Combine this with truly
it can't help but be
gems slip their way under
smart, realistic dialogue
the commercial radar and
and you enter a strange
engaging. "
into our hearts.
dialectical quandary between
the sharpness of the writing
The 2008 title I Kill Giants,
and the simplicity of the art, but
written by Joe Kelly and illustrated
that is why this book is so magical.
by Jim Ken Niimura, is most-decidedly one of
those gems. The multi-award winning title is so
IKG follows a brief part of 5th-Grader Barbara's
unpretentious and raw in its approach that it’s
life. The self-proclaimed giant killer generally
almost off-putting at first. Niimura's art is rough,
fits into your typical social outcast clique, with
sketchy, but most importantly, honest. Now, you'll
her particular quirks (like wearing various animal
ask/decry/bemoan/indifferently ignore: "That's
ears as an accessory or smart-mouthing people)
awfully subjective, isn't all [comic] art honest?"
isolating her from the 'socially-acceptable' school
and my answer would be calmly/loudly/patiently
crowd. Ever the opinionated rebel, Barbara often
spends time at the Principle's office due to various
instances of overt opinion-making, but treats
each visit as more of a professional courtesy than
something that may actually have repercussions for
her. When she's not annoying classmates, getting
into fights with bullies or antagonising authority
figures and therapists; the young Giant Slayer
patrols the coastlines, setting traps for any potential
giant attacks.