Jack Staff Volume 1: Everything Used to Be Black and White

When I first saw promos for Paul Grist's JACK STAFF comics, I wondered why we needed a superhero that appeared to borrow so liberally from 2 other established heroes: Marvel's Union Jack and Captain Britain. As a result of prejudice, I wrote this series off for quite a while as just another creator-owned superhero romp. Little did I know that this comic would eventually provide me with such enjoyment, and all because of a random article on Alan Moore. Recently, I discovered that the inimitable Mr. Moore was preparing to write a series for DC focusing on the IPC characters from British comics (The Spider, Tim Kelly, The Steel Claw, etc.). I'm a big Moore fan, but I knew absolutely nothing about these characters, and a web search led me to a site on Jack Staff, noting that these characters, or variants in some cases, appeared in Grist's series. This led to my purchasing the trade paperback, EVERYTHING USED TO BE BLACK AND WHITE, and while I did learn quite a bit about these characters, I learned something even more important: Paul Grist is an exceptional and very creative writer. The Jack Staff character came about due to the rejection of a Union Jack script Grist had written for Marvel. Not wanting to discard a good story, Grist reworked the plot substantially, altered the Marvel-owned characters, incorporated the IPC characters, and made it his own. The result is a fantastic piece of work that is very complex when read in an extended trade format. The stories within are actually made of even smaller bits that may seem disjointed at first, but are actually very tight. What's more, they are well-conceived: every story has a point, and instead of starting with a good catch and meandering to a pointless end, they were written with a purpose clearly in mind. Jack Staff is not just the main character here - he's the knot that holds the various threads of Grist's superhero universe firmly in place. Furthermore, he is "Britain's Greatest Hero", active since WWII, and the reader is provided with bits and pieces of Jack's 60-year "history". The supporting characters are so strongly realized that they threaten to overshadow Jack at times. Grist's approaches to Captain America (Sgt. States) and Dr. Strange (The Druid) are alternately hilarious and eerie, taking approaches that are very original, yet could never work in Marvel's continuity. By the end of this book, I was floored that such a well-told and complex tale had slipped right under my nose. Grist's artwork is very impressive, as well. While it is minimalist, it's obvious that he has an excellent understanding of page layouts and perspective. Many times I caught myself marveling at his choice of panel arrangement and text positioning, which aren't normally things on which I focus. So, impressive in both story and art, JACK STAFF: EVERYTHING USED TO BE BLACK AND WHITE is an excellent choice for your next meaningful read.

First and foremost, Paul Grist's Jack Staff is... well... fun. Incredibly fun. Reluctant superheroes, spunky girl reporters, gentleman thieves, master escape artists, vampires, hard-headed cops, psychic detectives... it's all here, plus the kitchen sink. Emulating the format and content British comics of his youth, Grist delivers rapid-fire, bite-sized stories that interlock to seamlessly tell much larger stories. It's a bit strange at first, but once you adjust, you'll find yourself hooked. All this good clean fun is backed up by truly impressive talent on Grist's part. Despite his cartoony style, Grist's grasp of anatomy and perspective is rock-solid. His characters are enjoyably complex and lively, and his plots prove surprisingly absorbing, full of portent and mystery. He uses black and white to striking effect, and loves to combine bold text and images in novel, poster-like compositions. "Jack Staff: Everything Used to Be Black and White" tops out at more than 400 pages, but you'll finish it in what seems like minutes, and find yourself wanting more at the end. It's terrific entertainment, and a sterling example of the comics medium to boot.