MU is a spicy gumbo of all things fantasy. With monsters, wizards, ridiculous weaponry, a valiant yet mislead youth, an old wise man, an ultimate evil, and plenty of voluptuous, scantily clad girlies with unusual hair color and a minute draping of form-molding cloth, Mu is the perfect recipe for fan boys. Through some elves, some interesting history, and a megalomaniacal dictator too blinded by ambition to see the real threat, you’re ready to serve up a great book hot and fresh with a little sprig of parsley. More specifically, MU is a magical kind of world that was once plagued by an ultimate evil known by his friends as Secneum. In it, the two greatest living wizards, Etramu, the old run-of-the-mill bearded wizard, and Kundun, a darker, younger, more trendy sorcerer, go alone to face off with the evil guy with the unfortunate name. This serves as a kind of history/interwoven plot. While, in Mu’s present, Secneum is returning, and the only one who knows is Icarus, and old librarian who has foretold the end of the world so many times that no one believes him. And, he will, of course, need a strapping young warrior with a tragic past and a monosyllabic name to save the day. Enter Zak.

Sure it sounds campy, but in truth, MU is a very good series. It’s kind of hard to write a fantasy book without involving overly round bosoms or the end of one world or another. What is important is that the books are interesting and the dialogue is well done (except the “Wheel of Time curse words.” Why do those keep showing up everywhere?)

The story, by Manson Khan and Andrew Dabb is another...well... story. While I like the two wizards and their fight against Secneum, the present story seems kind of rushed and ill planned. For one thing, the hero Zak, has joined a band of murderous bandits. Then, Icarus is like, “Hey, I’m gonna save the world, wanna come?” To which Zak responds “Ok, let me just kill my former leader and we’ll be on our way.” The artwork, on the other hand, is top notch. Mark Lee (artist) and Zack Suh (background artist) have done a spectacular team-up to make this a visually stunning comic. Kano Kang and Zack Suh did the coloring for this book, as well as for Mega City 909, which has a similar art style. If I have one complaint about the art it is that sometimes the character’s faces are too animated. There is only so much expression that a face can express. Also, sometimes the people are a little too shiny. It’s like they are all covered in a thin layer of metal or glass.

MU is an all around fun book, especially for the fans of the fantasy genre. While it has some potential, however, look elsewhere for epics, or if you are a newcomer to the world of fantasy.

-Fumanchu