The Way of the Rat
Vol. 3: Haunted Zhumar
By Chuck Dixon & Jeff Johnson
Checker Book Publishing Group
$17.95 US
Review by John F.D. Taff
This is actually a reprint of six issues of the defunct comic book, The Way of the Rat. A popular independent book, The Way of the Rat ceased publication a few years ago because of the financial difficulties of the publisher. The Way of the Rat is a comic-book answer to Kung-Fu movies.
The story centers around a peasant boy who steals a ring that makes him a master of staffs. The theft of the ring has numerous repercussions for the characters, none of them good.
This graphic novel is engaging. The story is interesting, the characters involving, and the artwork is bold and rendered in vivid colors. In fact, it’s probably the action—conveyed both by the story and the art—that really sets this apart from other independent comics and graphic novels.
I’d seen some of the earlier issues of The Way of the Rat, so I was somewhat more familiar with the story. However, even if you’ve not seen any of them, this volume is slick, entertaining and engaging.
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