Graphic Novel Review: SLIGHTLY EXAGGERATED

SLIGHTLY EXAGGERATED by Curtis Clow and Pius Bak (Dark Horse Comics, December 04, 2024) Paperback, 104 pages. ISBN #9781506742663 

Synopsis on the Goodreads website . . . .

 In Slightly Exaggerated, a dying treasure hunting girl must steal back a sacred artifact from a crazed cult leader to restore order before her sickness overcomes her in a whimsical fantasy world where religion is law.

An action-packed story set in a land where Sky-whales and airships populate the horizon following the story of Mia and her companion Winston who are caught up in a scheme way beyond their comprehension. Mia’s treasure-finding talents has them dragged into peril as separate factions wage war with one another in order to obtain three sacred relics capable of granting a person the power of a god. With just weeks left to live, Mia is prepared to sacrifice everything to save her friends.

Collects issue #1 through #4 of Slightly Exaggerated.

My Four-Star Review on the Goodreads website . . . . .

Would you like to escape to a fantasy land but don’t have a lot of time to spare?  Then, immerse yourself in the creative world-building of Clow and Pak, and enjoy the fascinating characters in this fast-paced action/adventure that ends all too quickly.

   There is so much engaging detail in this brief, four-chapter tale - - but also so much that is left unexplained. The reason for that might be that SLIGHTLY EXAGGERATED began as a crowd-funded project on Kickstarter. While this story could have easily been expanded to five or six chapters, when you’re trying to raise a minimum amount to cover printing costs, etc.  - if your goal is too ambitious you may not achieve it. Therefore, things had to be scaled back and you edit things down to the guts/root of your story.  Dark Horse Comics made a great decision when they released this as a trade paperback to reach a bigger audience, which I hope it does. 

   

   There’s a lot of heart, emotion, and courage in this story, and the way that main character Mia decides how to spend her remaining days (an unexplained non-contagious cancer is killing her body, manifesting in dark splotches on her skin) is touching and also heart-breaking. Her partner in treasure hunting/stealing is Winston, a cute dedicated talking-frog creature.  

IMAGE AT RIGHT: Curtis Clow (left) and brother Travis at the 2024 Ringo Awards dinner during Baltimore Comic Con

  This fantasy world with amazing flying whales and airships is centered around religion, and Mia is a skeptic who doubts there is a life after death except for an infinite sleep. The relics they have been stealing are revered religious artifacts protected by law enforcement (the Sacred Guardians). They are also sought after by a cult leader, Gwen, who hope that by obtaining all three god gems she will achieve godlike powers. That forms the main conflict throughout the story.

    I wondered about the selection of SLIGHTLY EXAGGERATED for the title of this graphic novel, of which the original Kickstarter-funded four issues were nominated for a 2024 Ringo Award (and deserved it). It might be because it seems that Clow is making an underlying commentary about faith and organized religion through the character of Mia. There’s a lot of discussion and statements, and Clow may not entirely share the viewpoint of Mia as expressed here - -  hence, Slightly Exaggerated.

This would lend itself to an excellent choice for book club discussion (a hint to the comics book club that I belong to). FOUR STARS.