Ads for Joe the Barbarian have been popping up in most of the comics I’ve been buying each week, and while I’m always wary of Grant Morrison, Sean Murphy’s art cannot be denied!

The book starts off with a simple familiar (toys come to life…or do they) premise, and surprisingly Morrison’s writing really seems to take a back seat to the storytelling that Murphy employs.  I especially love the sequence where our young protagonist comes home to a house rich with character.  Murphy says in a column in the back that he put in a lot of details that remind him of the house he grew up in, and this care is apparent as the mood builds while Joe ascends to his room.

The first issue is a single dollar. In today’s world of rising comic prices, there is no reason to skip this book.

Apparently the entire first issue is available online for free!