Comic Info
Comic Name: Bone/Wizard Presents: Bone
Publisher: Cartoon Books/Scholastic
Writer: Jeff Smith
Artist: Jeff Smith
# of Issues: 6
Release Date: 2005
Bone #8
Reprints Bone #7-11 and Wizard Presents: Bone #13 1/2 (December 1992-January 1995). The Bones find themselves in Barrelhaven before the Great Cow Race, but the Bones are being targeted by Rat Creatures for unknown reasons. As Fone Bone tries his best to woo Thorn, Thorn is haunted by her dreams of the dragons. The Cow Race approaches and Gran’ma Ben training…but the Barrelhaven’s bets are in on the Mystery Cow…who is backed by Phoney and Smiley.
Written and illustrated by Jeff Smith, Bone Volume 2: The Great Cow Race is an adventure fantasy comic book collection. Following Bone Volume 1: Out from Boneville, the collection has been released in many formats including an omnibus collection and the individual color releases by Scholastic. The collection was the winner of the Eisner Award for Best Serialized Story among other awards including Best Continuing Series, Best Humor Publication, and Best Writer/Artist.
Bone was a great all-ages humor book which actually wraps itself in an adventure. The series at this point is rather light and fun. Smith does a great job balancing the humor and adventure and I do like it when the series is more humorous. The comic is quite funny at this point and the Cow Race (Bone #10) issue is probably the best issue of this series. It shows the humor and power of Smith’s writing.
Bone #10
The comic also dips into the origin of Thorn’s dreams. This forms the crux of future issues and explains what is happening in the Valley. It is a fun and mysterious flashback that adds to the mystery of the book. It also presents one of the series’ great images with the young Thorn standing with all the dragons.
Also included in the collection are a few shorts. You get the Possum Interlude which is primarily an illustrated mini “day in the life” of the young possums. The second story is “Up on the Roof” which was originally part of the Wizard Presents: Bone #13 1/2 (January 1995).
I love Bone, and Bone 2: The Great Cow Race is what I’d consider the best of Bone. The collection still has the adventure an intrigue that the series later becomes known for, but it also still has the lightness. Bone is a great and well worth the read. Bone 2: The Great Cow Race is followed by Bone 3: Eyes of the Storm.
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