A graphic novel about three modern day witches! How could I resist?
So 'Spell on Wheels', by the writer of 'Patsy Walker, A.K.A. Hellcat!', Kate Leth, follows Claire, Jolene and Andy, three adult witches (yes, they are adults, not teenagers as you would've expected from this genre, revived for modern young audiences), each with her own magic specialty. Upon finding their house broken into and robbed and their magical protections useless, they go on a road trip in a snazzy new, Wicca-symbol car to search for their missing magical equipment, which the thief sells on the internet Goblin Market to prospective buyers, who want magic spells and objects for various reasons. Dangerous consequences are sure to follow, and the mystery of who the seemingly-unremarkable thief is, and who he works for, runs deeper than the witches think.
Let's think up famous women trios-to-quints in popular culture, and narrow it down to the fantasy genre: there's 'Charmed', 'The Craft', 'Practical Magic', 'Hocus Pocus'; none of which I like but are popular enough in the mainstream consciousness that they're inevitably there whenever the topic of witches in fiction is brought up. There's also 'The Witches of Eastwick', and the ton of Magical Girl anime and Western media, like 'W.I.T.C.H.'. 'Spell on Wheels' takes the witchy zeitgeist and both celebrates and improves on it for a new generation, with a dash of 'Scooby-Doo' cartoon aesthetics, without the pesky Hollywoodization and its overwhelming negative portrayal of witches (and women in general, but that's another loooooong, heavy topic talked about to death already).
'Spell on Wheels' is fresh and nuanced and full of great, well-rounded characters. It's effortlessly diverse: Claire is a curvy, red-haired Canadian, Jolene is an Asian lesbian, and Andy is Black, and though she's presented as the shy, inexperienced younger sister of the trio, she proves throughout the plot that she may well be the most powerful of the lot (yey rhyming! Am I casting a spell? Wouldn't you like to know ;) ).
There's also a sexy satyr named Paul (Claire is really into him in his only issue - bestiality? Who cares, he's a tall gentleman beast), blunt, unapologetic feminist commentary mixed throughout, and some real aspects of Wicca and its rituals, amid all the fantasy; magic is definitely real in 'Spell on Wheels', and catastrophic when used wrongly and for selfish purposes. The only other contemporary comic I've read that explores Wicca and witchcraft as a lifestyle is Greg Rucka's 'Black Magick', and I find 'Spell on Wheels' to be more fun and positive.
And to all the detractors who might whine about the feminism in the comic: 1) Why are you complaining about something that's clearly not made for you? Oh yeah it's because whenever anything isn't about you, you can't leave it be and you feel entitled to force your way into others' spaces and intentionally take them away and ruin their enjoyment and inclusion, of course; and 2) The feminist agenda makes sense in context, because witchcraft, Wicca and feminism go together like the sun, the moon and the stars. They always have done. I don't know if this was accidental in 'Spell on Wheels', but it stays true to the concept of witchcraft on the whole as being about female empowerment; about women coming together as a group of friends for a chance to be free and accepted as their own individual selves (woman, LBGT, POC, etc), as nature intended. To carve their own space; to feel wanted; to be themselves in the dangerous, patriarchal world, where witch burnings still exist in subtle, metaphorical ways.
My point is, do your research before you passionately, vehemently decry something you may not even try to understand otherwise.
Fun, progressive and fashionable - both the lighthearted and darker elements brew together exquisitely - 'Spell on Wheels' comes highly recommended.
Final Crescent Moon Score: 4/5
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