Comic Review: The Ghost, The Owl

"A rather curious and unusual plot."
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The world is filled with surprises. You never know what you may find while searching for the next good reading, and the surprise factor is always a good point in favor. “The Ghost, The Owl,” written by Franco and with art by Sara Richard gave me what I was looking for before I even realized what that was.

While flying, an owl find a ghost girl all alone who doesn’t remember anything about her life or even her death. She knows nothing about herself and feels lost, lonely and sad. The owl decides to help her, but the rest of the birds, even those who seem to be a kind of divine tribunal or guides, look suspiciously at this girl. 

However, the singular duo discover little glimpses of the ghost’s past page by page, her story and who she really was as they travel across the island they inhabit, realizing there’s someone in danger, a living woman who seems to be the answer to their questions, but who is also threatened by a greedy, unstable man who will stop at nothing in order to get what he wants. 

The Ghost, The Owl offers a rather curious and unusual plot, which I like. It is not that often that you come across an interesting proposal as a little owl that acts as a good samaritan for a ghost girl. The couple had a lot of potential to have their own series, maybe even a longer story, but it can be said that there’s a different kind of magic when you keep it short.

"The art can only be described as stunning."
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I found it to be a very good story, it had its details and some scenes that I didn’t find quite convincing, but well-crafted in general lines and with interesting, curious characters beside the main girl, along with our intriguing bird. Many of them have a strong persona and unique design, although there were some who had nothing to offer, to be honest.

The art of Sara Richard can only be described as stunning, it totally impressed me. I’m used to the common style, pages divided in a hundred panels, the same formula we have seen since we can remember, but The Ghost, The Owl is one of the few exceptions that break this non-written rule, doing it with brilliantly ease and style. 

I have to confess that it bothered me not to see the same style of the cover on the pages, since that sole image was the one that made me get interested in the book in the first place. Despite I already know that’s how things work with comics, I still feel I’ve been fooled. Yet, both art styles worked in the end, and that's what matters. 

What I really have problems with is with the fact that I feel there was a hole at the end of the story, a real reason that explained why that living girl was so important to the ghost or which her role was to begin with. It’s a total shame considering how well crafted everything else turned to be. 

Readers who want a short dark fantasy tale, easy to follow and with a simple structure but amazing art at the same time will fall in love with The Ghost, The Owl. Franco and Sara Richard did a good job, although the script didn’t fill my expectations. Maybe next time, we’ll have to wait for his next creation.