Adventures of Lady Luck

Reviewed by Chuck Moore

Adventures of Lady Luck, Volume 1: Secret Weapons
by Monson, Piriz, Wright
Simon Wright Comics / Awaken Comics
$9.95, [link]

Are you in the mood for secret nazi weapon programs circa 1943, flying saucers, edge of your seat pulp-esque action and some honest small press fun? Let me introduce you to the Adventures of Lady Luck from Simon Wright Comics under their Awaken Comics imprint.

I recently took time out to sit down with a digital preview copy of the weighty 98 page volume (roughly 80 pages of story and 16+ pages of solid extras). I found an interesting early effort from a new publisher that showed a lot of promise. The read itself was entertaining as an honor bound US military corporal finds himself captured by the nazi high command and, eventually, crosses paths with Lady Luck, a brainwashed super soldier created by Hitler to win the war.

The story treads a fine line between campy, b-movie fun and one soldier's occasionally very serious look at his own interactions with the enemy and the atrocities they've committed in the name of victory. Here, honor and the horrors of war are central themes throughout the story that treads near, but not directly on some very weighty subjects.

Given the book's heft, the story is a surprisingly quick read. In this Volume 1, we're introduced to the main character, Lady Luck, as we share her origin, her programming and the turning point where she is liberated from the nazi mind control. Are we left with a clear cut hero here? No, though the reader is presented with a nice cliffhanger ending regarding her final fate. Along the way, we experience the story through her eyes and, later, the eyes of a military officer gone rogue to save a captured friend behind enemy lines.

The sense of pace and visual storytelling here is strong as the scene layout proves really good at sharing that move-like action adventure feel. The dialogue feels a little forced at points but serves the story well overall. Honestly, this is a solid effort from a company finding it's narrative feet. That said, there are times that the story felt as if it were trying to be two things. The dichotomy of campy, fun flying saucers and zany attempts at super science felt a bit at odds with the deeper moments where the writer ties in the memory of Jewish family being hauled off by the SS. Two very different story styles and the creators here did a good job balancing the two.

My review copy of was a black, white and gray-shaded version of the story. As you will see in the preview below, the coloring added to the final version only enhances the final product. I'll be interested to see what volume 2 has to offer the reader.

[link]