[Link] Noir Is The New Black Anthologizes the Best in African American Comics

New publisher FairSquare Comics makes a strong debut with its groundbreaking noir-centered anthology that celebrates Black comics creators.

by Andrew Firestone

Newly released from Fabrice Sapolsky’s FairSquare Comics, its first offering Noir Is The New Black is an old-school comics anthology that delves into the inner and outer reaches of some of the best African American creators in comics today. The anthology is a collection showcasing 16 tales of shadowy, psychologically-gripping drama in the vein of classic urban mystery. Featuring an impressive roster of some 40 top creators, Noir Is The New Black provides an incredibly diverse compendium of stories set in time periods as disparate as the 1700s and the far-flung future, encompassing genres as different as true crime and science fiction. What unites them, according to artist Shawn Martinbrough’s foreword, is “a distinct visual approach to storytelling,” and it is an eclectic journey like no other.

Taking a purist’s approach to the headspace of the African American experience, this penetrative series of stories range from tales of rollicking adventure, such as the opener “Vera’s List” by Tyrone Finch and Todd Harris, as well as more cerebral sci-fi in “Igbo Landing” by Melody Cooper and Eder Messias, while occasionally treading into controversial territory. In totality, it is a daring approach, asking difficult questions of its audience throughout the journey through time and tempestuous circumstance. “The unfortunate reality for many of our lives, and it's something I've said from the start, is that we've lived and breathed noir our whole lives and I feel that comes through in many of our stories,” said editor TC Harris. “My philosophy has always been that within all of us, there is a story begging to be free. As creators of Noir Is The New Black, we were able to see our stories come to fruition.

Writer David F. Walker, creator of the hit DC character Naomi who contributed the story “Hart of the Matter,” said he was particularly inspired by the often dismal experience he had during the height of the pandemic. “I wrote the actual story at a time when I was struggling both creatively and emotionally. The pandemic was in full swing, life had been altered, and I was in a deep depression,” he said. To that end, he wrote the tale of Bobby Hart (skillfully illustrated by Mark M.D. Bright and Toyin Ajetunmobi), a writer of escapist fiction who finds himself on the wrong end of the kinds of crime stories he writes about. 

Read the full article: https://screenrant.com/noir-new-black-fairsquare-comics-anthology-african-american/