Suspended Animation - Liberty Meadows

Frank Cho is one of this industry's most promising talents, and has produced one of the greatest comic book worlds ever. Cho's Liberty Meadows concerns itself with the goings-on at a wild animal

Friday, January 11th 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

Frank Cho is one of this industry's most promising talents, and has produced one of the greatest comic book worlds ever. Cho's Liberty Meadows concerns itself with the goings-on at a wild animal sanctuary.

Great characterization and fabulous art are both the norm on this book.

Frank Cho is a student of the best of the old pulp artists, and it shows in his style, as well as the breadth of his artwork. That's not all, though, as the guy spins a great yarn, and creates great characters.

My personal favorite ongoing character interaction is that of Frank (the resident vet) and Brandy (the resident animal psychologist). You see, Frank
is hopelessly in love with Brandy, but doesn't have the wherewithal to tell
her to her face. In fact, Frank is pretty pathetic when it comes to his feelings for Brandy, having had more than one regrettable "episode" in her
presence; tongue-tied, passing out..., you name it, he's probably done it in
front of her.

All of this goes to make up a lot of the book's humor and charm. I mean, you're rooting for this guy to tell Brandy how he feels, but you know he's
probably not going to make it in the end.

Then, there are the animals. Dean, a chain-smoking pig who thinks he's God's gift to women, and his buddy, Ralph, a midget circus bear. These two are almost always hip-deep in it, along with their friend, Leslie, the
hypochondriac bullfrog. Also, a very polite young duckling named Truman (he calls everyone "Ma'am," or "Sir"), and his pet wiener-dog, who also seems to be his best friend. All of this, plus the terror of the local lake, Khan, the biggest catfish in the tri-state area.

I highly recommend it for adults, as well as older kids, but some of the humor won't be appropriate for young readers.

Look for it at your local comic shop, or at www.libertymeadows.com. Liberty Meadows, published by Inside Studios Group, 32 pages, $2.95.