The Comic Art of Stacie Ponder

Stacie Ponder's
They Won't Stay Dead!
&
Hungry Like The Wolf
Stacie Ponder and Dirk Manning
2006
http://the-sticks.blogspot.com
Review by: Superheidi

When Stacie Ponder first drew her 'cute little stick figgers' we had no idea how fucking cute they really were. SO cute they're scary. Stacie, quit-witted child that she is, realized this and soon turned her comedy/horror/scary/sticky comics into (not one, but TWO) comics that you can buy and enjoy. They Won't Stay Dead is a zombie spoof, and Hungry like the Wolf plays with the idea of werewolves and romantic comedies. Really.
Stacie's sense of humor and diabolically childlike artistry make her work not only some of the most original stuff I've seen in comic books in recent years, but some of the most purely enjoyable. Did I mention that there are no words?
They Won't Stay Dead! Is about a girl who has a run-in with traditional, bite-happy zombies. While in the midst of watching Night of the Living Dead on television (with quite accurate renderings of Johnny and Barbara had they been made out of sticks) the girl hears a strange noise at the window. It's a zombie! From there on it's a clever mix of dream sequences and frightening zombie-on-girl action.

Hungry Like The Wolf is written by Dirk Manning with Stacie's art. A wacky werewolf romance is just as fret with fighting as any normal human mated pair. As a bonus, in Hungry Like The Wolf, you get Tonight, written and illustrated by Stacie. Tonight does have text, though minimal. A murderous doll harasses a young girl and her family.

What Stacie can do that not many artists can is capture emotion, facial expression, and comedy through a few minimally placed lines. This is not shaded, intense, or in-depth art, folks. This is real minimal. The comedy and timing are intricate but perfect; she never misses a joke. They all come through on the mark. By picking the right symbols, intervals between actions, and subject matter, Stacie is able to create real people and put them in actually terrifying situations with three strokes of a pen. When was the last time YOU jumped when reading a book or a comic? For me, it was when I read Tonight for the first time. Even with a narrator, she's able to draw your eye to one picture at a time, preventing you from getting the whole story until she's absolutely ready for you to get it. And she gives it to you.

It probably helps that Stacie is a particularly funny person, and that she has experience inking for comics like Bloodrayne. She's put her skills to use and made a very original horror series that appeals not only to horror fans, but comedy fans. This could be a running comic in a major city newspaper. It could be a huge collection, hardcover, that becomes a classic for women in the horror business. And it probably will.