I love DC's roster of magic characters, and while Klarion the Witch-Boy may have been the last one I thought would get a solo ongoing, I am happy to report that it is more than worthy of your attention as a reader. Ann Nocenti, Trevor McCarthy and Guy Major present Klarion #1 as a from-the-ground-up reboot for a lesser-known character that could very well become a fan-favorite. Klarion #1 shows that you don't have to be a slave to earlier adaptations of a character to tell a compelling story. You can keep the sense of history that the character carries with it, but still manage to make it your own in order to present the audience with something fresh. Klarion #1 is that something fresh, in the strangest way, in a market that sorely needs it. Read Full Review

Klarion #1 is definitely the ongoing you didn't see coming, but it's worth reading again if you're a fan of DC's supernatural titles. With that said the issue is fairly short for a first issue. A lot happens and more pages could be used to make sure nothing is rushed. Klarion may be of a young age, but this is also something you can read without feeling like you aren't the intended audience since this feels like a title anyone can read. There's a good idea of what to expect from this series down the road in terms of the plot and Klarion as well since we see that there's more to him than meets the eye. His place in this town can go good or bad depending on how he controls himself, or is able to lay low(not likely). Read Full Review

DC's New 52 is hitting a strong average this month with debut issues, and Klarion adds a sense of the magic surreal to the DCU that has been missing for some decades now. Nocenti's mesmerising tale is bolstered by McCarthy and Major's magnificent art, something that can be devoured over and over again. Read Full Review

Like experimental punk rock, you have to let yourself get carried along with the sudden turns in music; commit too much to one movement and you'll easily get lost. Still, there's some good ideas and fantastic art here. Read Full Review

KLARION #1 is a solid start to the new series. Nocenti's character work is great, and McCarthy's layouts add a flash of personality to the look of the book. If there is one flaw it is that the book's plot seems a bit unfocused, though that can be easily fixed in future issues. Read Full Review

Issue one barely scratches the surface of what this comic has to offer, but it is a very confident debut from a creative team with both history and innovation on their sides. The character of Klarion is instantly likeable, and there's enough story within the mystery that ,even though every character has some kind of hidden, ulterior motive, you don't feel like you're being kept waiting to get to the good stuff. Plus, while it's not explicitly stated in this issue, it's been suggested that the city Klarion has found himself in is Gotham, which opens up a whole world of possibility for an extended run: Definitely something to keep an eye on. Read Full Review

Klarion is a lot of fun, but also really vague and confusing. I'm okay with things being fast paced and out of the ordinary with no explanation, but given the track record of the writer, I'm hoping it doesn't devolve to the usual ham-fisted plot points that are hand waved off and glossed over as the story moves forward. Read Full Review

Here's the thing, though: I'm 100% picking up issue #2, so "Klarion" #1 must be doing something right. The Moody Museum, Rasp and magic's war with technology have all peaked my interest. The creative team is playing with ideas and atmosphere that I don't see in other DC titles. Whether they can smooth it out going forward remains to be seen, but I'm rooting for this book. Read Full Review

Nocenti's dialogue is bitingly heavy-handed at first in an attempt to capture an edginess that magical teenagers might possess. By the end of the issue, it finds its avant-garde stride, and you'll start to feel comfortable and curious in Klarion's odd new world. Read Full Review

Klarion comes out of the gates brimming with potential because of it's gorgeous art and the start of a focused direction for the character. As Nocenti and McCarthy open up Klarion's world to the rest of the DC Universe, we'll see how well they're able to balance a book that less insular without losing sight of their main character. The threat is a bit amorphous right now, but the concept is strong enough to give that a pass for now. DC might have found their endearing trickster, and it looks like it's going to be fun seeing what this creative team can conjure up next. Read Full Review

Klarion as a series can't really be judged by this first issue. It's definitely going somewhere, but it's hard to tell where. Ann Nocenti has a lot of great ideas, and this book is definitely continuing that. The question of whether she'll properly execute them remains to be seen, but at the moment the story's quality is at least high enough to generate some interest in what will come. For those that might be interested in Klarion, it's worth giving a shot. Read Full Review

There is great set-up for what the bigger issue will be downthe road. It creates a curiosity for future issues. Read Full Review

Stay for the visuals, skip the story. Maybe as a trade the first arc of the series will be better, but as a first issue, I can't say I'd stick around the find out. Read Full Review

This series at least looks to be offering something different, but that in itself isn't enough. Read Full Review

Longtime fans of Klarion still might want to give this a look. However, if you're yearning for some mysticism in your DC books, you're better off with titles like Justice League Dark, Constantine, and Sandman: Overture. Read Full Review

Klarion #1 is a mess, something I was sadly expecting and was hoping wouldn't be true. Nocenti's writing and storytelling are still rather bad, making this a frustrating read. There are some interesting ideas here and the artwork is a feast for your eyes, but it's not something I can recommend. I'll keep an eye on this going forward to see if it gets better, but I'm not sure if it will. Read Full Review

An interesting story with visuals too dark to see. I expected better. This won't last long looking like this. Read Full Review

Just keep moving, folks. There is nothing to see here, especially nothing scary. This Klarion, this Witch Boy, is a lot more boy than witch. Read Full Review

I'd love to tell you how great this issue is, but that would make me a big, fat, sticking liar.  I may be big, fat and stinking, but mister, I am no liar.  Besides the art, this book sucks.  Everyone needs to pass on this so the higher ups at DC will give Ann yet another book, maybe Section 8. Read Full Review

and yeah ... i didn't understand anything

When I first started reading this, it looked promising. It started great, even with some issues. The only thing I see with people complimenting the art, and it is, indeed very great. I love the decorated panels, very criative. But I hate the character designs. Klarion looks so different it looks like they took out everything that made the character unique. He doesn't look creepy anymore like Jack Kirby's version, neither has the Puritan clothes, they were replaced by some stereotypical teenager clothes. Even worse, he's older ( cause... Teens ) and his blue skin is also gone. No kidding, when I first saw him disguised as human I thought he was a girl. Also, Teekl is gone. One of the biggest characteristics of him was his magical cat, and now she's gone. Zell and Rasp are absolutely terrible. I like how they just took the Zell of Rapunzel and the Rasp of "Rasputin" and thought they were so creative. It's ridiculous. Well, at least they didn't call Rasp "Putin". Rasp is an boring character whatsoever, he doesn't even have something that resembles Rasputin, just the horrible name was heritage. Zell dresses like a 2000s Britney Spear's music video. As a goth teenager myself, I fear offended knowing that's how adults see how we dress. The story is cliche whatsoever. Generic plot where the protagonist stops a fight he has no involvement, just so that we know how good and badass he is. Zell's entire personality is a joke and a bad stereotype that didn't make me laugh. In a page where they talk about the characters they had the audacity to call her "a little chubby". Chubby? Did any of these people see an actual chubby girl? It's ridiculous and none of these characters seem believable, neither does Klarion himself. more