"Tillie Walden is the future of comics, and On a Sunbeam is her best work yet. It's a "space" story unlike any you've ever read, with a rich, lived-in universe of complex characters." - Brian K. Vaughan.
Celebrating my 1,000th League of Comic Geeks review (copied over to here from there) talking about one of my new favourite books I've read recently. I'll admit that as much as I like to promote many indie books coming out these days, the most indie my pull list gets at the moment is some Image Comics titles, as well as Something is Killing the Children and its spin-off House of Slaughter, both from Boom! Studios. You really can't buy everything, so I do what I can. But I digress.
So because of that, it's always a pleasure when I hear about indie books outside of Image and Boom, so I can go back and check them out. I don't know how many people have heard of Tillie Walden as a creator, but I hadn't before I first heard of this book, highly praised and recommended by The Comics Collective podcast last year.
On a Sunbeam was first serialised by Walden as a webcomic between Fall 2016 and Spring 2017. It's still available to read, for free, in that format at onasunbeam.com. Then in late 2018, it was picked up for physical releases by Avery Hill Publishing and First Second Books, in the UK and US respectively. It is described as "a queer space opera graphic novel story of love that starts in boarding school ― and persists to far-away outer space." If that doesn't already capture your interest and imagination like it does mine, then hopefully the rest of this review will.
"The inception of On a Sunbeam came from my perpetual disappointment and boredom towards any story set in space."
"My initial goal was to create a version of outer space that I would want to live in."
When going back to the website the original webcomic is hosted on, so I could link it above, I realised I hadn't read the "About" section in my few visits to the site. I'm constantly fascinated by the process all creators go through in making their comics, as I always think it enriches my experience of them as a reader. So that section was an interesting read, but I thought those two sentences above highlighted the heart of this comic and why it's so special. Walden also mentions being bored by "snippets of big popular space movies", asking "why are they so full of white hallways and white men?"
It shows why representation and diversity is so important, both on and off the page. Walden admits in the "About" page I keep mentioning that she knows nothing about the genre of science fiction. So she is able to write this with such a blank slate, effectively. Bringing her own ideas to the table as a lesbian woman, and what she can imagine a space-faring human civilisation might be like. That makes it sound more grand than it is, as it's more muted than that, and I mean that as a compliment. But I'll get to that in a moment.
The idea of outer-space in this comic felt so unique and interesting, as Brian K. Vaughan also mentions in the quote I kicked off this review with. There are lots of stories that, when showcasing their re-imagining of something as widely covered and talked about as space, they go for bold, cinematic blockbuster epic-scale storytelling. I love that! I do. But that's what made On a Sunbeam so refreshing to me, because it's the complete opposite of that. In so many of the comic stories we have set here on Earth, it's not the focus or often even mentioned that the story is set here on Earth. So it's the same with space here in this comic. I hope that made any sense at all.
So it adds an interesting and extra layer of awe as we're traversing the places explored, getting to soak them in and see what Walden has created, meanwhile it's just another day for the characters we're following. That said, Mia works nicely at some points in the book, as the "main" point-of-view character we follow, and audience stand-in as we're discovering the cosmos and getting to know the crew of Aktis alongside her. I love the other characters, but she is the emotional hook and backbone of the book.
"Just take it one day at a time, kid. You'll adjust."
On a Sunbeam isn't just unique in terms of it's approach to space, but with how it's written as well. During the first half of the book (the first 12 chapters out of 20 in total) we simultaneously flashback to Mia's school days, contrasting with where she is in the present on the Aktis. It's a nice way of gradually unfolding both the story, and the motivations and backstory of her. With that much time spent before the story truly kicks into gear, it might lose some people. But personally I was hooked, getting even more invested the deeper we went back into her past. The moments she spends with Grace at the school were as heartwarming as what eventually was heartbreaking, and it's not as obvious as you might think from the way I just described. At least that's what I thought anyway.
I adore slice-of-life elements in my comics, so that first half of On a Sunbeam was such a joy to read and soak in. Skillfully intercut with events of her present, it was brilliant. That said, the second half was just as fascinating, but for different reasons. Mia's ultimate goal in the story is mentioned in the solicit for this collection, but even though I thought I had read this solicit, it was such a thrilling surprise to me reading the book. Like the whole comic in general, it feels so grand, but emotionally so rather than with any kind of spectacle. The comic looks great don't get me wrong though, I'll talk about the art soon. So by that point I was so invested that I really felt the tension, action, emotion and heart on display. It's a bold, daring quest for and declaration of love by Mia, that honestly had me on the edge of my seat. I read the first half quite gradually, and the second half much, much faster. It builds up momentum, like a train slowly moving along, before really picking up steam and reaching an emotional climax towards the end.
That high page count may be daunting, but I thought it was so worth it, and so much of it is just soaking in Walden's wonderful artwork and lettering. I've talked extensively about my thoughts on the writing, and how it made me feel, and all of those feelings are illustrated so perfectly within the artwork. A lot of art these days has a very glossy feel to it, especially since so much is done digitally now. I love so much of that, don't get me wrong. But it just creates such a special aesthetic here when the artwork feels completely different. From what it says in the indica, the pencilling was done physically and then "coloring and cleaning up" was done digitally. There's such a fun, scratchy feel to the characters and their settings. It makes it feel so grounded and real to me, juxtaposing again with the usual summer blockbuster ideas we can have of space. The art is gorgeous as it is, but the simplicity makes it stunning emotionally.
The colors have a gorgeous, pastel painted feel to them. They're so rich and vibrant in that way, where you want to just get lost in the worlds created here. I used the word "muted" earlier and that really applies here as well. It's so understated at times, but that means it hits so much harder emotionally when experiencing the story here over the 500 or so pages. The font of the lettering then encapsulates the aesthetic of the art so well. I read so much of this while listening to lofi music, if anyone else knows what that is. If there was any comic that was perfect to do that with, I think it's this one. It's such a delicate and fascinating balance between relaxing escapism, and painfully human experiences, romance, and problems. It's why I adore comics so much that can nail that balance. We may not have been in Mia's specific situation, but so many of us can relate all too well to the pain and reality of a lost love. Especially from a queer perspective, it's so fresh, exciting and such a treat to have read.
"It's been more than five years since I last saw here. She could be, you know, with someone. Happy, moved on."
To conclude, On a Sunbeam is such a beautiful comic reading experience. Physically so, for one. The hardcover I have is gorgeous, as is the art throughout. But also emotionally, and thematically, as I've talked so much about. It's a heartfelt sci-fi comic set in space that feels so profoundly human. The themes of the pureness of young love, what the loss of that can leave behind, and how we connect to our past, and future, are nothing new. However one more time, it's all framed within such unique, intriguing ideas and a refreshing perspective by creator Tillie Walden. I highly recommend you check this out if you're interested and haven't already.
Here's to another 1,000 League of Comic Geeks reviews.
If you want more of Joe's comic thoughts and reviews, you can find him on Twitter @JoeLovesComics and on the League of Comic Geeks also @JoeLovesComics.
You can also find his podcast on Twitter @JoeTalksComics, which you can listen to through Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and Spotify, or you can click those hyperlinks directly.
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