A magical clockwork fairy-looking creature seems to be the unofficial guardian of the city. She flutters about checking on her charges. However like all clockworks, she must be wound every so often to survive. Her usual "winder" isn't available, so an unsuspecting man named Jason helps her. In exchange, she reveals bits and pieces of her origin to him and then leaves. Saddened and full of despair over her fate, she throws away her key, but another creature finds the key and introduces itself. What are its motives and is it friend or foe?
Jane Irwin introduced herself at the Warren Ellis Forum and linked to her website. I followed the link and, a few weeks later, had a copy of Vögelein. I wasn't sure what to expect, but as anxious to see it ‹ especially after Wendi Frost said it was all painted! I love painted pieces. Irwin's a very prolific painter with stunning attention to detail. I had to go through the comic twice to catch all the intricate designs and background pictures that were contained within each panel. I especially noticed the wallpaper on the first few pages. I really liked the pattern and how "real" it looked. I was also impressed with her ability to render each "human" in a different way. Her characters didn't look like cookie-cutter molds from one person to the next. There were distinctive qualities about each that showcased Irwin's talents.
Vögelein is a very intriguing story. I really want to know more about these characters, the clockwork's origin, and its creator Heinrich Uhrmacher. I'm curious to know about its life from the 1600s to now. In just a few stories, Irwin had me imagining about these characters and wondering how each came to be in his/her current state. I like a book that leaves me wanting to see more and imagining how I would do this or that with characters. Irwin's whet my appetite to and I'm anxious to see the rest of this series. If you like fantasy, if you're looking for something different, if you enjoyed Avigon, then you really will like Vögelein.