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Got some preview copies of The Dorothy Of Oz series,volumes 1 & 2,which makes me happy and should make those fans of Manhwa out there more than happy!

 

 

 DOROTHY OF OZ 1 & 2

 

 

When Mara Shin’s dog Toto gets lost one fateful day, she goes in search for him along a yellow brick road and ends up in the wonderful land of Oz! Everyone starts calling her Dorothy, but these aren’t the cowardly lion, scarecrow and tin man adventures you remember!

 

 

This fantastic fairy tale features familiar characters…but with a definite Asian twist!

 

 

CHARACTERS:  

Mara-Shin - AKA: DorothyShe WAS just an ordinary school girl… but, since she’s become lost in the land of Oz, Mara-Shin has had to grow up fast! As the only person able to see the magical yellow brick road, could Mara actually be the legendary Dorothy?   

Toto -Toto is Mara’s pet and constant companion. He may be a tiny pile of fluff, but this little pup has one heck of a bark!   

Abee-Codename: Scarecrow. Despite his gentle demeanor, ordinary appearance, and an annoying habit of mixing up his vocabulary, Abee can definitely take care of himself. He’s a human clone who’s telekinetic powers make him a force to be reckoned with.   

Namu-Codename: Tin Woodsman. The cybernetically enhanced Namu is fast, strong, and has more tricks up his sleeve than a Swiss army knife. Though he lacks emotion, and can sometimes be logical to a fault, he’s always ready to protect his friends.   

Tail -Codename: Cowardly Lion. Don’t’ let his codename fool you, because this cat definitely has claws! Impatient and quick-tempered, Tail has a knack for getting our heroes into trouble…   

Pillanin -Lieutenant Pillanin is an officer in the Oz Military, but he has a sinister agenda of his own. As if his unauthorized genetic experiments weren’t bad enough, Pillanin has allied himself with a deadly force that could threaten all of Oz…   

Shine

Another officer in the Oz Military, it’s tough to tell who’s side Secret Agent Shine is really on. One thing is certain, he has taken a personal interest in Mara and her new friends… 

So that is the company info out of the way -what is the comic really like?

Well,the first thing that has to be said is that Son Hee-Joon is a good artist and if you want to see the differences between Manga,Manhua and Manhwa this is a good example. 

And,of course,you are not getting the traditional “Wizard Of Oz” style story here.  The characters are fun and well characterised -Abee certainly is not the traditional Scarecrow and has some really cool abilities.  The same can be said for the almost [Star Trek TNG] Data-like Namu -nice advice on not using a dry hard stick to hit someone as it would break but using a more flexible piece of wood…have to make a note of that!

Tail,I suspect,may have a case of worms!  Never seems to get enough food.  I can see Tail and Namu turning into the most popular characters,though Toto has a rather cutesy insane enough look to make him in the running for “most popular character”!

The action,street scenes and backgrounds are all well handled and the good use of tone adds to the atmosphere in many scenes -and some snappy lines such as: “Oz will belong to the Devil.  I am the Devil now!”,this is going to be enjoyable for both male and  female readers!

And how can the dynamic foursome [uh,sorry,Toto!] survive if Oz’s soldiers have all been scientifically altered so that they become monstrous creatures?

I think this is liable to be one of Udon’s best-sellers because it has everything -and might even tempt to odd Trekkie or super hero fan to buy a copy!

The only negative point from me is that the copies I have are all advance reading copies and there are,obviously,pages missing which I assume is to prevent illegal scanning and piuracy,which is all well and good but until I realised this I thought it had all been badly edited!

Dorothy Of Oz vol.1 is available in stores from November 2007.  It’s by,obviously,Son Hee-Joon,200 pages and in the Manhwa format [that’s 8 1/4″ x 5 3/4″].  $11.95  US  -in the UK try your local Forbidden Planet store as they tend to stock a good supply of this genre.

Dorothy Of Oz  vol.2

Selluriah -Witch of the East is introduced and….”She morphed into a pin-up girl?!” oh boy,you have to buy the book to get the joke but then again,Oz soldiers dealing with  a Cyclopean terror controlled by the evil Sepia-!!

The fight in the library is quite nice -books flying everywhere!  This book still shows the elements  that should attract male and female readers and it’s certainly given me the taste to look out for other projects by Son Hee-Joon.

Volume 2 is out in February 2008,same specifications as before and it might be worthwhile advance ordering via Forbidden Planet.

 

Star Project Chiro by Beak Hye-Kyoung looks interesting and the story synopsis:Eun-Yo Song has beauty, popularity – everything a girl could want! After a chance encounter with pop-singer Nan Lee, Eun-Yo finds herself getting caught up in the world of super stardom. But little does she know that Nan Lee has plans of his own for her…and she’s about to fall into his trap!

The art on this is what I once described as “souvenir-doll” style.  That said,there is some fantastic work going on here -though I’ve only see the online preview pages.

If you want to find out more about Udon,future projects,ordering online or more,go to:

www.koreanmanhwa.com

Well worth checking out.