Each new twist and turn had me fully captivated – I literally could not put it down till I’d read every last page! The art is vibrant and energetic [...] Every detail adds realism to this spectacular world, and each character stands out as important and unique – each with a story to tell. [...] The story is compelling and entertaining with an excellent flow that makes it fun and easy for such heavy topics of death and sadness.
# read the full review

Thanks Sheena!

Because of the look of “The Clarence Principle” and the trends of this publisher this book is going to be pigeonholed as gothic fairytale. I can see a lot of people describing it as a dark twisted Alice in Wonderland. I don’t see this as an insult or a disservice however I see this book as having many influences ranging from gothic books and films to Jeff Smith’s “Bone”.

I would say that if you like the idea of Donnie Darko meeting Alice in Wonderland and they go for a drink in a Tim Burton Film then give this book the attention that it deserves – you won’t regret it.
# read full review

I love that bit in bold text right there. what a great visual.

Thanks Steven!

Clarence wakes up in a bloody bathtub, victim of his own depression. On the mirror is a cryptic message: “Find me”. Discovering himself to be in the strange and twisted world of the afterlife, he must search for meaning in his death. Along the way, he encounters a host of bizarre and compelling characters, all of whom seem to be struggling in a similar way.

Of all the western manga tales we’ve read, this one stands head and shoulders above the rest as an offering which is not only visually outstanding, but is also thematically complex and altogether fascinating.

Reading The Clarence Principle is very much like watching a Tim Burton movie – it’s grotesque, it’s gothic, it’s morbid, and yet it’s gloriously inventive; a window to a peculiar new world which feels worth exploring. That’s not to say that The Clarence Principle feels particularly derivative – in many ways the world created by Said and Chankhamma is deeper and more thought provoking than those presented in, say, The Nightmare Before Christmas or The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. The world of The Clarence Principle is as much a part of the plot as the leading characters – a place which is somewhere between hell and purgatory. It is this world that Clarence must explore in order to unlock the secrets behind the mysterious note left for him on his bathroom mirror; and the events surrounding his suicide.

After wandering from his bathroom, Clarence happens upon a multitude of characters who are making what they can of their strange existence in the afterlife. The man in the moon is one of the first characters he happens upon, and it’s here that he finds a sense of purpose – to discover how the dead can die in order to relieve the moon man from his 236 years of suffering. Many of the characters Clarence meets have a sense of dark humour about them, from the argumentative judge in the lift to the tailor who seems to be much friendlier than he turns out to be. The juxtapositioning of this humour and joviality with the gloomy surroundings tinges everything with a disturbing edge and drags you that much deeper into Clarence’s world.

Visually, the story is a breath of fresh air – borrowing much from the world of manga without feeling plagiaristic. The cute round eyed character designs are very Japanese, but Chankhamma has imbibed them with a new lease of life thanks to some stylistic touches around the eyes and ears. The supporting cast are as interesting in design as they are in character; particularly the man in the moon (who brings us right back to Burton’s Jack Skellington) and the macabre tribe of clock worshippers who provide a grisly diversion early on in the story. It’s this originality and detail in the character designs that makes Clarence such a fantastic read, and means that you’ll want to dip back into it time and time again.

With elements of myth, fairy stories, dark humour and age old themes, this compelling and beautiful story is a must for fans of gothic fiction and western manga alike. Like all the best manga and anime, it tackles philosophical, moral and emotional themes, but ultimately leaves the final conclusion down to the individual reader. Deep, dark and striking, this standalone novel deserves huge success – and Said and Chankhamma are a duo to look out for in the future. More of their work can be found in the upcoming Best New Manga anthology from Mammoth.

We thank you NEO for this amazing review. It’s great to read feedback like this, it makes all that hardwork worthwhile.

I’ll be uploading a preview of our short story ‘The Forgotten Incident of San Sabian’ later today. We’ve been told that the new Best New Manga anthology will be out in October. Well worth your time picking that up, it’s even better than the first book!

In other news, we’d like to give a shout out to a fan we’ve stumbled upon while browsing YouTube. She’s made an AMV for our book XD how cool is that? You can watch it below:

The extra books I’d ordered arrived last night. These are for selling at cons here in the UK. First one being JapanEX which is in about 2 weeks time now. I won’t be there, as I’ll be flying out to the US a few days before, but the books will be on sale at the Sweatdrop stand.

Now the question is, how the hell do I get these to Cambridge O_o they’re heavy!!

Michael May (whom I owe a column! eep!) reviews The Clarence Principle by Fehed Said and Shari Chankhamma at the Blog@Newsarama. He has praise for both the story and art:

Chankhamma’s art is as poetic as the story it tells. Her depiction of the afterworld is affecting: dark at times; hauntingly lovely at others. And the people who inhabit it are sometimes funny, sometimes spooky, sometimes beautiful, but always expressive and real. All of which makes visiting The Clarence Principle an engrossing event.
# read full review

Nowheresville, USA has a review of The Clarence Principle, giving the new graphic novel by Fehed Said and Shari Chankhamma three and a half stars: “It’s rare that I come to the end of a book (comic or otherwise) and just lose my breath from being astounded. I sat there dumb-founded. It was a good sort of feeling – to not really know what to think. I think it’s been a long time since I was surprised.”

Meanwhile, at SLG Art Director Scott Saavedra’s blog, he gives you a look behind the scenes at the process behind the design of the cover of The Clarence Principle. Writes Scott, “Sure, this a completely insane, backward way to produce a cover design but we’re all crazy here. That’s just how it is.”

Yep.

The image of Clarence’s face that was on the original cover is now on the spine. We don’t like to waste art here.

End of SLG Post.

In other news, Shari is still working her butt off on our upcoming 44 pager, ‘The Forgotten Incident of San Sabian’. She’s a trooper that one. Really, she’s been losing out on a lot of sleep and working non-stop all day everyday to get this done by the deadline, and she’s not cutting any corners either! Click on it for a larger more detailed image:

Suicide, as we know it in North American culture, is a dark, disturbing, and wholly selfish act, one derived from pain, often done to deliver more pain, and sometimes done to relieve it. It’s an act that’s not really very easy to make light of, and perhaps even more of a challenge to adapt into a “down the rabbit’s hole” type adventure. Yet, that’s what writer Fehed Said and Shari Chankhamma have attempted to do with their original graphic novel, The Clarence Principle, which explores a purgatory or restless wandering that resembles a landscape plucked from the Sandman’s Dreaming merged with the backdrop of a Tim Burton animated movie.
# read full review

I liked reading this review.

From the SLG Publishing LiveJournal

The Clarence Principle by Fehed Said and Shari Chankhamma – 224-page graphic novel, $12.95

Embark on a surreal voyage into an unconventional vision of the afterlife. Clarence wakes to the aftermath of his own suicide and a hidden message spawns his journey beyond. Follow Clarence’s twisted tale, as he meets whimsical characters whose fates are destined to intertwine with his.

If you’re looking to get a copy of The Clarence Principle, we recommend that you try Borders or Waldenbooks . The bookstores ordered far more copies than comic book stores did. And of course, it’s also available from the SLG website, www.slgcomic.com.

Kevin Melrose at the Blog@Newsarama chooses The Clarence Principle as his pick of the week. “I’ve been looking forward to The Clarence Principle since SLG Publishing announced it back in February,” he writes.
—

To celebrate, Shari and I asked a friend, Carrie Dean, to create some LJ icons for us. Here’s a small sample:

You can see all 20 icons and download the full set here.

First proper review for Clarence. Found by our friend Kelsie.

on the art: Shari’s…

[...] art is gorgeous, vaguely and superficially resembling the round-headed, emotive characters of Brian Lee O’Malley’s Scott Pilgrim, but her storytelling, gothic lighting and lush backgrounds move the art into a completely different realm. She’s able to move back and forth between the humorously bizarre to the gut-wrenchingly heart breaking with apparent ease, and the fantasy settings of the story never get confusing, no matter how dreamlike they become.

on the story: Fehed’s…

[...] story is filled with terrific moments, many of which will make most readers laugh out loud at the absurdity or blackness of the moment. However, despite some emotional moments, the overall theme of Clarence’s self-discovery doesn’t quite pull together in a satisfying. Undoubtedly many readers will still enjoy the book, and even take something away from it, but my feeling is that Said left the circumstances of Clarence’s life too open to generate the proper closure. The finale feels artificial and incomplete, disjointed. Nevertheless, the journey, in this case, is sufficiently enjoyable that it is probably worth the ride, no matter where you end up.

Originally from Newsarama.

Overall, this is a positive review, me happy <3 <3 a bonus comment from some japanese blog about american comics (and linux)

“まったく知らない作家の作品だが、プレビューを見るとかなり期待できそう。”

According to babelfish, it’s something along the line that s/he has good expectation for the book after seeing the preview even tho the writer is unknown. (or maybe totally different thing altogether, you can’t trust babelfish XD)
—

So there you have it, our first review. Now go pre-order the book!