Supernatural Law
by Batton Lash
from "Exhibit A Press"
Reviewed By Rick Higginson
Sometimes, you're fortunate enough to have something
cool drop right onto you even when you're not
specifically looking for it. I figured on picking up
some comics to review when I was at Comic Con this
year, though I really had no idea which ones. We went
on Friday to the Con and wandered around, getting a
feel for the place, picking up a few things, and
trying in vain to get some of the interviews I wanted
to get done. On Saturday, we went back to Comic Con,
and just for the fun of it, I wore my Wizard's
costume. I have to say that was the best move I could
have made. I was wandering by the Exhibit A Press
booth on Saturday when the folks there asked if I
would mind posing for a picture for them. I'm usually
happy to oblige such requests (only time I ever get to
feel like a celebrity), and what they wanted was for
me to pose with a person who was costumed as Alanna
Wolff, one of the two principle characters in their
comic. Since Alanna Wolff is an Attorney, I was posed
as if I was taking her business card from her (that
picture might just end up on their web site, I was
told). For my trouble, I was given a copy of
"Supernatural Law" # 33. I'd never heard of this comic
before, so I didn't think much about it when I took
it. In fact, I nearly lost the comic when I set it
down to try and organize the stuff I was carrying. It
wasn't until a little bit later, when I was halfway
across the Con from where I'd set it down that I
realized I'd left it.
I'm glad I went back for it.
"Supernatural Law" originally started out as "Wolff
and Byrd, Counselors of the Macabre", switching over
to the "Supernatural Law" title beginning with issue #
24. The concept and the characters date back to 1979,
when Batton Lash began drawing the comic strip for The
Brooklyn Paper. It ran in The Brooklyn Paper until
1996, and in The National Law Journal from 1983 until
1997. In May 1994, Wolff and Byrd made the jump to
their own bi-monthly comic book.
You might be thinking that a comic book with lawyers
as the principle characters is going to be about as
entertaining as reading the transcripts from a Board
Meeting. After all, as the author of "Supernatural
Law" learned first hand when he began drawing the
strip, the courtroom is rarely even half as exciting
as it's shown on TV and the movies. The twist here,
though, is the clientele that retain Wolff and Byrd as
their Counsel. In issue # 33, the client is a Dybbuk,
or demon, who has decided the "other side" is correct,
wants to find salvation, and is fighting in court to
be allowed to attend a church. Reading the synopsis of
other issues on the Exhibit A Press Webpage, the
clients that contract the services of Wolff and Byrd
are light parodies of many "supernatural" characters
from popular fiction.
What makes the comic work is that Batton Lash spent
time in court rooms, observing how things transpire,
and more importantly, the stories are checked out by
Mitch Berger, a practicing Attorney in the Washington,
D.C. area. The cases, the process of the hearings, and
the resolutions are checked by Mitch for plausibility,
lending an authentic feel to the stories despite the
fantastic clientele that wander through. The comic
eschews the typical television and movie "courtroom
drama" shtick, drawing its entertainment value from
the interplay between the characters instead. In the
reviewed issue, part of the drama is drawn out of the
Dybbuk's misogynistic character refusing to interact
with women. When the litigating partner in a law firm
is the woman, and the character does not want to be
represented by a woman, you're going to have some
troubles.
In issue # 33, the inclusion of far more narrative
text than would normally be found in a comic book adds
a great deal to the story. Using the premise that the
text is derived from the Dybbuk's journal, the story
is advanced beyond what could be done in the same
amount of space devoted to comic panels, while the
column of "journal entries" parallels panels that
correspond to the text. Those who prefer pictures to
words might find this distracting, but being an avid
reader, I found it an effective enhancement to the
typical comic format.
The artwork in "Supernatural Law" is pen and ink
format, no color. I found the artwork to be consistent
in quality through the issue, and the style fit the
comic well. For those who tire of the busty,
unrealistic female heroes of many books, Lash's
characters are much more "down to Earth" in
appearance. Jeff Byrd has a slight paunch and a
receding hairline. Alanna Wolff, though lean, lacks
the "gravity defying" breasts, skimpy outfits, and
"sex pot" look all too common in comic book women. The
Dybbuk character, "Huberis", in issue 33 will remind
many of the character "Cerebus" drawn by Dave Sim.
Dave Sim inked Huberis for the cover of issue # 33, so
if you're a fan of Cerebus and/or Dave Sim's art,
you'll find that enjoyable as well.
I'll be watching for back issues of "Supernatural Law"
on my forthcoming visits to the local comic shop, as
this one has definitely caught my attention. Exhibit A
Press can be found on the web at: