New To You Comics #101: Your Favorite Folk Hero/Serial Killer In ‘Nottingham’ Vol. 1

Tony and Brendan have very different tastes in comics. Tony loves his capes, super powers, and sci-fi. Brendan tends to stick to horror, noir, and weird indies. Occasionally, their paths cross, but like most readers, they tend to stay in their own lanes.

New To You Comics is here to break up the pattern a little. Tony will throw some of his favorites at Brendan, and Brendan will hit Tony with some of his. Every NTYC title is brand new to one of them. Every once in a while a title will land with both of them. Most of the time they can find some common ground, but even when they don’t, it’s fun to watch them go at it. Brendan fights dirty. Tony kicks like a mule. 

This week, they’re taking a look at Mad Cave Studios’ reinvention of the Robin Hood myth, Nottingham, by David Hazan and Shane Connery Volk. Here’s what Mad Cave tells us about the book:

In this twisted medieval noir, the Sheriff of Nottingham hunts a serial killer with a penchant for tax collectors. The Sheriff’s investigation makes him the target of England’s most nefarious power-brokers. That’s to say nothing of the Merry Men, terrorists lurking amongst the trees of Sherwood, led by an enigma known only as “Hood.”

Brendan Allen: Stories of Robin Hood go all the way back to ballads composed in the late 1300’s. In those early accounts, Robin Hood was depicted variably as a yeoman, an archer, and an outlaw. Much later in the telling, his backstory was changed to make him a disgruntled nobleman with allegiance to King Richard I, who had returned home after fighting alongside the Lionheart in the Third Crusade.

That last interpretation actually lines up really well with Hazan and Volk’s vision of the ‘Hood’ in Nottingham. A religious fanatic follows his King off on a holy rampage against Salah al-Din to retake Jerusalem. Lopping heads and taking names at Ayyadieh. Leaving the battlefield while his beloved leader stayed on the trail murdering Muslims. Finding a home that barely resembled the place he had abandoned years earlier.

Lots of triggers for a damaged psyche.

Tony Thornley: This was a hell of a reimagining of that very familiar story (I actually watched my favorite Robin Hood movie- the animated Disney version- just last night). This version’s whole scope of Sherwood and Nottingham was just so vastly different, yet still very recognizable. It’s not foxes and bears running through the forest by any means though.

Brendan: I know this doesn’t exactly fall into the same category as stripping back the layers of bullshit and polish on ugly history, but Hazan’s script does an incredible job boiling down centuries of idolization and embellishment to get to the bleak, complex roots of the Robin Hood mythos. It’s a bold move, and Hazan pulls it off with no apology. 

The book goes down some deep, dark holes, but everything fits within the framework of accepted canon. The repetitive nature of Hood’s dialogue has the cadence of a religious mantra, practiced thousands of times in private. His compulsion to brutally kill, the grudge against the Usurper and his agents, the military stealth in undertaking missions. All of it fits. 

Tony: I was really worried that Hazan might go the route of glorifying the Crusades a bit, but as the story progressed he didn’t just make it explicit that yes, the Crusades were evil, but showing how they clearly had warped Locksley.

That goes with what you’re saying about the Merry Men. Their near-religious manta, the symbolism they use… It reeks of Locksley being a true believer while Sherriff Blackthorne is broken and disillusioned. It paints everyone in shades of grey.

Brendan: The other thing here that’s almost a complete 180 from the known stories and songs is the portrayal of the Sheriff of Nottingham. He’s usually a stupid brute who’s trying to take advantage of the weak, scared locals. In Nottingham, he’s a cunning, capable detective. He’s damned good at his job, and he actually makes a lot of sense when he talks about why Robin Hood is actually hurting the folks he’s claiming to protect.

From the solicit, I fully expected the dialed up gore and mature themes. The whole 12th century CSI  thing caught me off guard, in the best way. Violence and gore, sure. Detective noir? That’s new. I’m for it!

Tony: Yeah, I really liked this take on the Sheriff of Nottingham. He was still a hulkish brutish figure, but he had much more noble intentions. It goes back to what I said about shades of grey. Blackthorne knows that the institutions he’s supporting are corrupt and maybe evil, but the Merry Men are doing much more harm than good.

Really, I just wish the story had spent more time with Locksley and Marian. I really enjoyed the new take on the Sheriff, but the whole world could have been fertile ground for the story. That might get followed up on later, we’ll see, but it really could have been bigger.

Brendan: Now, I did initially take issue with the art, due to its highly stylized, caricatured nature. Seemed a little too quirky and cute to take seriously as horror. 

The further I got into the story, though, the more I appreciated it. Deep lines and texture in faces show emotion (chiefly pain and anger) clearly. It’s one of those situations where the cartoony nature of the work lulls you into a false sense of security before dropping the hammer with a shocking amount of blood and gore. 

Tony: Oh I dug Volk’s work right away. About the only thing I didn’t like is that he seemed to give all the male characters the same cross-hatching on the same spot on their upper jaw.

His depiction of the violence inherent in the story was really great. He didn’t shy away from it, but he took time with the consequences of it. This wasn’t beat-em-ups or sword fighting in a vacuum. The characters were knocked down, disabled, and put down thanks to their injuries.

Brendan: This is obviously not one for the kiddies, and it’s really going to piss off some folks for looking at a beloved hero through a dark lens of PTSD and mental health, but I really love it. Nottingham turns hero worship on its ass and challenges the long held practice of canonizing atrocious humans and polishing up their flaws.

Well written, beautifully drawn. This is just good comics. 

Tony: Yeah, also worth noting, this is a high quality comic from a small press. This is the book that should be putting Mad Cave on the map, without a doubt.

Brendan: It also really lends credibility to Mad Cave’s annual talent search. These guys won in 2019, and this is their very first project. Big props to the publisher for hosting the contest and then giving the winners the platform to create this book.

What’s up next week?

Tony: We’re going to jump into one of the more unique superhero books of the last decade- the first volume of Black Hammer by Jeff Lemire & Dean Ormson.

Nottingham Vol. 1 is currently available at your local shops. The story continues in issue #6 on April 6. Final order cutoff for retailers is March 14, so be sure to let your shop know today if you want Nottingham #6 in your pull box.