Please, we know her classmates are making fun of that hat.
W.I.T.C.H.: The Graphic Novel Free Preview
Yen Press/Disney Comics (October, 2017)
“The Twelve Portals” part 1
CONCEPT: Elisabetta Gnome
CO-WRITER: Francesco Arribani
ARTIST: Alessandro Barbucci
COLOR/LIGHT DIRECTION: Barbara Canepa
INKER: Donald Soffritti
COLORIST: Mara Damiani
TITLE PAGE COLOR: Andrew Cagol
Wait, what color? The preview at least is in black and white.
Will (somehow a girl’s name…maybe in Italy?) moves to the city of Heathersfield. At her first day of school and a party later she makes friends with Irma, Taranee, Cornelia, Hay Lin, and Elyon. Each of the girls have had some strange dreams. Those dreams may be tied to the mythical land of Kandrakar, which Hay Lin’s grandmother tells them about and gives Will an amulet that matches the one in her dreams. However, some goons who showed up at the party trying to capture Will goes after her, leading her into a trap when one of the girls betrays the other. (You can guess who due to the acronym.) Using the amulet, Will activates Hay Lin and Irma’s elemental powers, something the quintet have been demonstrating until this moment. They manage to chase off the enemies from the other side of the Veil, which keeps our world separate from the world of evil…the Veil our heroines are destined to become the Guardians of.
What they got right: Halloween ComicFest is the October version of Free Comic Book Day. We get a full, and surprisingly long, story for free. The concept and lore seem solid enough. We also see early signs of the girls’ magical abilities, which they write off at first. My guess is the other two get their powers later in the graphic novel.
What they got wrong: I don’t know if it’s because it’s a preview, but the lineart is so light I feel like I’m looking at the finished pencils, not the inks. In a black and white comic that makes it difficult to read because that includes the lettering. I’m not sure why Hay Lin’s grandmother is the one with the amulet if Will is the one who unlocks the other girls’ full magic power. You’d think either Will would have the grandmother tied to Kandrakar or Hay Lin would be the one who unlocks everyone’s powers. The girls have decent personalities but outside of a minor quirk there’s nothing distinct about them. Even visually the only real differences are hairstyles, except for Taranee and Hay Lin due to being other than Caucasian. The villains don’t have much of a personality, so I’m guessing Elyon falling for the human looking one is just about his looks. Speaking of which…
What else is there: If you’re expecting something like this you’re in for a mild surprise. The French animators only minorly altered the art but the graphic novel is closer to Winx Club than this cartoon (or what little I’ve seen of it). The transformations are even closer to theirs, but more “magical girl”esque, complete with that part where they’re technically naked but look like their wearing a glowy bodysuit or something. It’s amusing when you remember people were comparing Netflix’s live-action Winx Club to the W.I.T.C.H. cartoon.
What I think overall: It does look like a decent story for girls, but it’s not something I’d really get into.
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