NOTTINGHAM #1 – A Dark Take on the Robin Hood Story (Hazan, Volk, Romano, Gil) Mad Cave Studios

• Writer: David Hazan
• Artist: Shane Connery Volk
• Colorist: Luca Romano
• Letterer: Joamette Gil
• Editors: Chris Fernandez and Brian Hawkins
• Designer: Diane Bermudez

Thanks to Mad Cave Studios for the review copy!

Robin Hood, we all know him. He’s a cheery fellow in green tights who lives in a forest and uses his bow and arrow to rob from the rich and give to the poor. But what if the story was a lot darker than that? Then you’d have NOTTINGHAM, a fresh take on a well known story from Mad Cave Studios.

While many of the tale’s touchpoints remain (Maid Marian, Will Scarlett, an aversion to taxes), this version of Robin Hood shifts the characters a bit, with retelling that features plenty of bloody violence. Robin Hood seems to be the bad guy, or at least not as heroic as most tellings would have us believe. Sheriff Blackthorne appears to be set up as the protagonist, sliding into a role akin to a police investigator from a crime TV show.

The art features angular characters, which are slightly exaggerated but realistic. From wrinkles on characters faces to the streams of blood shooting out after they are killed, this issue consistently shares lots of detail. Between this and the occasional curse, parental discretion is advised. Fitting a comic about old England, the colors are daily muted, aside from the occasional pop of orange on a the head of a “ginger.”

Nottingham ends on a surprising note, further reminding us that this is not the Disney version of Robin Hood (the one with the foxes, which I remember as being pretty decent … but I digress). Its first issue shows more promise than the recent live action takes on the Robin Hood story and the new direction promises to keep even die hard Robin Hood fans guessing.

NOTTINGHAM #1 is set for release on March 10th, 2021 but can be pre-ordered now.

Are you going to pick up this issue? Feel free to chat with me on Twitter or leave a comment below!