Well! Well! A review of Alice in Leatherland

Alice in Leatherland is a comic series by Iolanda Zanfardino and illustrated by Elisa Romboli.

Geek Native is written to lure geeks into the wonderful world of tabletop RPGs, which means writing about broader subjects like comic books without this blogger not having any expertise on such topics. I just know what I like, and, spoiler, I adored Alice in Leatherland #1.

It also means I didn’t immediately recognise the name Iolanda Zanfardino. But I did want to link to where you could buy yourself a copy of Alice in Leatherland; I couldn’t find it on comiXology, so I tried Amazon next. Wow! What a list.

Iolanda is the lead writer on Midnight Radio but Amazon also knows all about those Doctor Who credits Fearless and Punisher in which the Alice in Leatherland writer is an artist. That explains a lot. That explains why Alice in Leatherland has such a clear art direction and why the story just absolutely aligns with the illustrations so well.

On, side note, while I can’t find Alice on Leatherland on comiXology, now I’ve looked, I can find Ioland Zanfardino.

But you’re getting an introduction I didn’t have. All I knew was that I accepted an offer to take a look at a comic book, which I accepted, noting Geek Native’s usual struggles to turn around such requests promptly.

Therefore, Alice in Leatherland was a surprise to me. Somewhat, I concede there’s a clue in the name.

It starts with nine parts wholesome with one part promise of something else. It begins with the comic book writer Alice chatting with her friend and illustrator about her current book. It’s noted that this story isn’t the usual cheerful fairytale. Perhaps something is going on in Alice’s life?

Well, if it wasn’t then; it would soon be!

The whole comic is presented in tones of pink. It’s a crisp and easy read, Elisa Romboli nails scene after scene. I feel the wholesomeness, perhaps a touch otherworldly, ooze through the art in a friendly way, like honey from a honeycomb.

Alice lives in a small town. I think I know the type from American TV shows. It looks pretty, but it’s small and far away from the centres of civilisation that connect cosmopolitan people together.

I might have illustrated the whole town in shades of green, not pink, to suggest just rural it was – but I would have been wrong. Pink is right.

Alice makes friends with me straight away; she doesn’t even need to try. She’s clearly lovely, but not too nice, optimistic without being naive, and she’s no pushover. Alice feels like good people.

I’m team, Alice.

What happens next will be interesting. Alice in Leatherland ends with the traditional “To be continued…” and I swear I scrolled my mouse wheel just a few more times to ensure there wasn’t a teaser of issue #2.

Now, good news. You can buy Alice in Leatherland online and from publisher Black Mask.

I also notice that CBR called the series out as a “Top 10 Upcoming Indie Comics”. Now, there’s a blog that can claim expertise on the topic of comic book blogging. I just know what I like; I liked Alice in Leatherland.