Orphan and the Five Beasts by James Stokoe Review

One of the finest games in recent years is unquestionably Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild from 2017 for the Switch. The story goes: Princess Zelda tasks the androgynous hero Link to defeat the evil Ganon with the help of the Four Divine Beasts, all of whom, along with the land of Hyrule, have been corrupted by Ganon’s Blight and Link must cure them each to aid him in his quest.

I’m speculating but I’m guessing James Stokoe was among the millions who played and loved Breath of the Wild and, unconsciously or not, has replicated the same story in his latest comic, Orphan and the Five Beasts. His story goes: Some Guy tasks the androgynous hero Orphan Mo to defeat the evil Wolf Man, as well as the Five Beasts, all of whom, along with the land itself, have been corrupted by Wolf Man’s demonic power and Orphan Mo must defeat them all in her quest.

Without getting into a detailed review of Breath of the Wild, what I loved the most about it was the gameplay and definitely not the generic, boring story that loosely connected it all. The problem with Stokoe’s comic is that it doesn’t have that saving grace: it’s basically all just crap story. Paper thin characters, the most basic storyline, predictable developments - Orphan Mo defeats both of the Beasts because she has to (yes, that means there’s at least another book planned in this series to cover the remaining three Beasts, and, no, I won’t be reading it).

The book does have Stokoe’s amazing art though, and it is incredible. Wonderfully detailed, coloured in a way that perfectly complements the style, so dynamic, and the panels are always filled with so much. I’ve always enjoyed Stokoe’s art and it doesn’t disappoint here. He’s such a unique and talented artist.

It’s just a shame that there’s a huge disparity between the art and writing, the latter of which is so completely unimpressive and underwhelming. The bad guys are so childishly conceived - Thunderthighs likes using his giant thighs to kill horses and Chopper Teng likes to chop up his meat to serve to customers. Why? ‘Cos that’s what those characters like doing and bad guys do bad things. Hmm.

Maybe if you’re a fan of Stokoe’s art, this one might be worth checking out, otherwise Orphan and the Five Beasts is a comic that’s easily ignorable for most readers.