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Heathen, Vol. 1
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August 2019 BotM - Heathen Vol. 1
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I read Heathen last month, so if it's okay to do this I'll still post my thoughts :) In a nutshell, I enjoyed the book. An LGBTQ story in a Viking/Norse mythology setting with women propelling the story is unique, and I think Alterici builds the world well. I liked the story best when those themes were a natural part of it rather than pushing too hard (Brynhilde's episode in the village was weak and preachy); I'm always a fan of talking animals and the characters were mostly solid, though I think we need more from Aydis. The art grew on me as the story progressed as it became more precise and detailed, though the muted color palette was kind of boring. Would love to see Marvel take a page out of Heathen's book with their Valkyrie announcement which I am so, so here for. Full review is here on Goodreads as well as my blog.
OK TO AIR (for this post and all of my comments - and thank you!)!
FYI - I Read Comics did an interview with the creator of Heathen, Natasha Alterici last fall. http://www.ircbpodcast.com/this-is-no...C'mon Mike, it's like I'm doing your job for you. ;)
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C'mon Mike, it's like I'm doin..."
Dang it! Ya got me :P
This was my second read of Heathen, and I liked it even more than the first time. I agree that the wintry color palette is dullish but when the sunset colors are added for some of the full-page spreads, the effect is stunning.
The animals' body language was wonderfully drawn. The issue with Skull and Hati and Saga was delightful and I hope to see more of them.
Re: Skull and Hati - did anyone else feel like they upstaged the main character/plotline? I felt more of a draw to read more of them to be honest.OK TO AIR
Tom, I totally agree - they were really fun and intriguing to read and they reminded me of Neil Gaiman's characters or something out of Fables. Not to put too fine a point on it, but I feel like everything I know about Aydis is that she likes girls and not too much else. (Edit, just to be clear, I am THRILLED that there are more LGBTQ+ stories out there, as a member of that community - but someone's orientation shouldn't be the most/only significant thing about a character, which is how I feel about Aydis.)
I liked the story, but it took me some time to warm up to it. I'm really glad we weren't stuck with the "first kiss" girl with internalized homophobia for too long, because although these things happen, I'm a little tired of reading stuff like that and generally prefer stories with LGBT characters where the main conflict stems from something other than the characters being LGBT, if you know what I mean. I do think Natasha Alterici did a great job balancing it out. Yes, there's plenty of homophobia in this world, but it doesn't seem to be the focus of the story. The general themes of love and self-acceptance play a bigger role.
OK TO AIR
Tom wrote: "Re: Skull and Hati - did anyone else feel like they upstaged the main character/plotline? I felt more of a draw to read more of them to be honest."I'm not a big fan of talking animals, so I saw their bit more like a distraction than anything.
Inga wrote: "I liked the story, but it took me some time to warm up to it. I'm really glad we weren't stuck with the "first kiss" girl with internalized homophobia for too long, because although these things happen, I'm a little tired of reading stuff like that and generally prefer stories with LGBT characters where the main conflict stems from something other than the characters being LGBT"I very much agree. I liked Richard Morgan's The Steel Remains for much the same reason.
Heathen was this month’s selection from the Goodreads group I Read Comic Books as this month’s topic was own voices. At first, I wondered if the author, Natasha Alterici, was a half-naked woman Viking, but no, she is lesbian and we are given a fresh take on Viking mythology with a welcome LGBTQ+ storyline.Aydis is a young Viking woman warrior who has recently been outcast by her tribe for she was caught kissing another woman and did not renounce her feelings like the other young woman did to save face. Her father was told to give her two choices- death or marriage, and her father knows she has the skills to survive on her own, so he lies and tells the villagers she is dead. Aydis wishes to take her destiny into her own hands, so she seeks Brynhild, a former Valkyrie banished by Godking Odin for disobeying him, and forced to marry any mortal who can free her from a magical mountain. Already the parallels are clear- women are being punished by the patriarchy for going against their wishes of what they feel is proper.
A short interlude introduces us to Skull (aka as Sköll) and Hati who are two wolves from Norse mythology that are forever trying to eat the Sun and Moon. At first, their inclusion in the story seemed odd, but as the story progressed there was also Aydis’s talking horse Saga and the trickster God Ruadan who appeared as a bull. All of this contributed to the world-building of this fantasy-based Viking tale, in addition to Aydis’s journey to Odin’s decadent castle with the Goddess Freyja.
The art, also by Alterici, really grew on me. Inked in black and white with a few sepia and blush overwashes and black gutters, it captured the iciness of the Northlands. The ladies were often very scantily clad lithe beauties, and I being a practical lass, wondered wouldn’t they be cold or more battle-worn? Then it dawned on me that guys aren’t the only ones that can admire the female form! While not a lot of background is drawn into the panels, it lent itself to a more character-driven story.
A fan of Brian Wood’s Viking series Northlanders, this similarily themed graphic novel was lighter with more of a mythology angle. I found it extremely appealing, and plan to read volume two that just came out of the planned three-volume series. (This review can also be found on my blog: https://graphicnovelty2.com/2019/08/2...) *OK TO AIR
Nancy wrote: "Heathen was this month’s selection from the Goodreads group I Read Comic Books as this month’s topic was own voices. At first, I wondered if the author, Natasha Alterici, was a half-naked woman Vik..."Whenever I read or see scantily clad female warriors, I think of Sir Terry Pratchett's description of one of his sensibly clad in chain mail.
Your text seems to indicate that since it isn't just guys doing the "admiration", it's somehow ok? Am I reading that right?
Tom - I don't want to speak for Nancy but in my mind it's more about intention than right or wrong. Historically, straight men have drawn women's bodies exclusively for the straight male gaze - which makes a statement about who comics are for and what women's bodies are for in comics. (Of course that extends far beyond comics too.)Alterici's choice could be turning this notion on its head: that the reader is not necessarily male, as a queer book. She could be drawing attention to the role of patriarchy both in Heathen's world and in our world. Additionally this could be a statement of women reclaiming their bodies: regardless of dress, we dress for ourselves.
Lenny wrote: "Tom - I don't want to speak for Nancy but in my mind it's more about intention than right or wrong. Historically, straight men have drawn women's bodies exclusively for the straight male gaze - whi..."Lenny- I couldn't have said it better myself. I feel Alterici was making a statement, as women (esp in superhero comics) are often scantily clad, so she did the same in hers, but from a different viewpoint and for a different reason.
OK to AirI really really enjoyed this book.
I’ll start with the art, because I love it! It checks out a lot if not all my boxes when it comes to the aesthetics I like as well as all my sensibilities, especially in the flashbacks/stories.
I enjoyed the framing of the Viking/Norse mythology because it gives me something familiar as well as providing a new POV with the authors narrative. I don’t go outside of capes too often so it i found this very interesting to read as it is a real life issue in a context that fits the story.
I think the best way to tell how I feel it to say that i already have the next 4 issues so I can keep reading. I will say, this book was hard to find without paying full price lol.
I am worried about how long the latter issues took a while to come out but if it meant success for Alterici then it’s worth it lol
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Not to be that guy, but I'm going to point to this episode where we discuss this exact topic!
Episode 119 | I’m Here For One Thing And One Thing Only
Mike wrote: "Lenny wrote: "Tom - I don't want to speak for Nancy but in my mind it's more about intention than right or wrong. Historically, straight men have drawn women's bodies exclusively for the straight m..."I listened to that podcast and heard the Heathen shout-out! Kudos to Alterici for subverting the trope of women drawn solely for men's pleasure.
Just listened to the episode last night - thank you so much for the shout outs!!! I appreciate the discussion about the color palette, you guys made some good points and I'm looking forward to rethinking my opinion when volume two comes out....not that everything has to be a metaphor but I wonder if we'll start to see more color as the patriarchy is overthrown ;) looking forward to another great discussion next month!PS - Mike I am 100% on the Runaways train with you and as a trade reader so relieved to hear the new artist is a good follow up from Anka!
Just finished reading the book, and held off on the podcast till I was done, I’m really looking forward to listening. The story was great, but more than anything else I thought the artwork was brilliant. I’ve never seen comic art that I thought used the digital tools available to the artist so well, and the fact that every stroke made by the artist was visible made for beautifully textured detail, every panel is worth poring over.
Thank you for your responses Lenny and Nancy. I would suggest that having scantily clad females around is how patriarchy works - that's why it is the Patriarchy. So I don't see the choice and only a little of the trope reversal. As a likely flawed example, booth babes are how Patriarchy works too - to say that women can also "admire" them seems secondary to main point that they are a sexist construct.Edited to add: That said, I understand that as an older white guy, many, many stories have been written for me so I might be downplaying (from ignorance, rather than maliciousness I think) the importance of a story written for me, or me in a story, in my thinking.
I'm in a rush to catch up, but I finally got my hands on a copy and was able to read it.I LOVED IT. This book was so fun for me because I'm a total mythology nut. The scratchy artwork was stunning and I thought it and the color palette complimented the story being told so well. I was fully invested.
I loved all of the different types of love that were observed within the story. Aydis and her father/Saga, Brynhild and Sig, Shannon and Freyja, Skull and Hati. It wasn't just one thing.
Aydis is fighting to become who she wants to be with her father's blessing (on the sly). I love that she's confident in who she is and what she believes enough to do that thing-at the end-with the squashing.
Skull and Hati were an absolutely delightful nod to Norse mythology and I was, indeed, delighted! I will absolutely be continuing this series. :D
I Read Comic Books
Books mentioned in this topic
The Steel Remains (other topics)Heathen, Vol. 1 (other topics)
Make sure to mark your comment as "OK TO AIR" and we'll discuss it on the BotM episode on August 28th!
Reminder: This discussion thread is FULL SPOILERS for Heathen Vol. 1! If you have read more in the series, please do not to share spoilers for anything that happens beyond this volume.
Tune in to the IRCB Podcast on Wednesday, August 28th for the podcast team's discussion of this month's book, Heathen Vol. 1. You can find the podcast on the Apple Podcasts, Google Play Store, Spotify, ircbpodcast.com, and more.