Review by Frank Plowright

A small remote town holds a costumed cookery contest as part of their annual festival, and it’s the only time childhood friends Charlie and Cherry are in serious competition with each other. Cherry usually wins, and it’s relatively effortless for her, but Charlie has to really toil to earn second place and he’s frustrated at never being top at anything.

With that set-up, where Alex Newton is heading may seem pretty obvious, but a good creator is going to circumvent expectations, which is exactly what Newton does. Artichoke Knight is so named for Charlie’s costume, and despite competition spurring the early portions, this is a story about friendship and taking the opportunity when it arises. It’s set apart by basic human kindness and understanding being built into the foundations and held together by the realism of Charlie and Cherry’s relationship.

When it comes to that the art is as important as the writing. Newton illustrates the awkwardness and the uncertainty through posture and expression ensuring we believe in the two main characters and what they’re feeling. The landscapes have equal feeling despite the exaggerations of David Hockney’s way with colour a seeming influence, the brightness reflecting the general optimism. Equally important are the whimsical elements of a man riding a pig or the costumes for the cookery contest. They provide visual variety while reinforcing that while Charlie and Cherry’s world may resemble ours, it’s a different place entirely.

Heightened dreams also play a part, investing Artichoke Knight with a dose of mystical realism that increases as Charlie’s rite of passage continues. It provides an enjoyable ride, but one that switches at a moment’s notice and too often. Charlie and Cherry’s story doesn’t end here, but continues into a planned second volume, and the feeling is that more compacted storytelling in a single volume would provide a better experience.

With Amazon out of stock, why not buy direct from Newton’s webpage?