''The Midas Flesh'' is a 2014

comic book A comic book, comic-magazine, or simply comic is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are often accompanied by descriptive prose and wri ...

limited series In the field of comic books, and particularly in the United States, a limited series is a comics series with a predetermined number of issues. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is finite and determined ...

Ryan North Ryan North (born October 20, 1980) is a Canadian writer and computer programmer. He is the creator and author of ''Dinosaur Comics'', and has written for the comic series of ''Adventure Time'' and Marvel Comics' '' The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl'' ...

, with art by Braden Lamb and Shelli Paroline, exploring the legend of

King Midas Midas (; ) was a king of Phrygia with whom many myths became associated, as well as two later members of the Phrygian royal house. His father was Gordias, and his mother was Cybele. The most famous King Midas is popularly remembered in Greek m ...

within a

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

al context. It ran for 8 issues, and was published by

Boom! Studios Boom! Studios (stylized as BOOM! Studios), is an American comic book and graphic novel publisher. They are headquartered in Los Angeles, California, United States. The company is a subsidiary of Random House division of Penguin Random House sin ...

Synopsis

Millennia after King Midas accidentally transformed the Earth into gold and killed all life on the planet, fugitives from an oppressive galactic civilization arrive, seeking to use his still-intact corpse as a weapon.

Reception

ComicsAlliance ComicsAlliance is an American website dedicated to covering the comic book industry as well as comic-related media, and is owned by Townsquare Media. The site has been nominated for multiple awards including a 2015 Eisner Award win in the categ ...

'' called it "funny, imaginative and remarkably dramatic" and "probably North's most serious work to date".Best Comic Books Ever (This Week): New Releases For June 24 2015
published June 24, 2015; retrieved August 19, 2021 ''

Las Vegas Weekly ''Las Vegas Weekly'' is a free alternative weekly newspaper based in Henderson, Nevada Henderson is a city in Clark County, Nevada, United States, about southeast of downtown Las Vegas. It is the List of cities in Nevada, 2nd most populous ...

'' praised the "relaxed, witty style" of the dialogue, but noted that the story had "more comedy and probably more fantasy (...) than hard science iction.‘The Midas Flesh’ delivers sci-fi with a smile
by J. Caleb Mozzocco; at ''

''; published December 17, 2014; retrieved August 19, 2021 At ''

Comic Book Resources ''CBR'', formerly ''Comic Book Resources'', is a news website primarily covering comic book news, comic book reviews, and comic book–related topics involving movies, television, anime, and video games. It is owned by Valnet, parent of publicat ...

'',

Kelly Thompson Kelly Thompson is an American writer of novels and comic books. She is best known for the '' Jem and the Holograms'' comic with co-creator and artist Sophie Campbell, a modern re-imagining of the 1980s cartoon of the same name; the Eisner-nomin ...

lauded it as "absolutely engaging and heart-stopping", with protagonists who are "charming, lovable, and desperately heroic", and art that was "clean and crisp, with an emphasis on excellent character acting and smooth functional storytelling";The Midas Flesh #7
reviewed by

, at ''

''; published June 30, 2014; retrieved August 19, 2021 Thompson did, however, fault the series' conclusion as "a bit of a ''

deus ex machina ''Deus ex machina'' ( ; ; plural: ''dei ex machina''; 'God from the machine') is a plot device whereby a seemingly unsolvable problem in a story is suddenly or abruptly resolved by an unexpected and unlikely occurrence. Its function is general ...

''", saying that since the story "relied heavily on science and smart decisions", it was "frustrating" to have gods appear, even if they had been established as part of the initial

worldbuilding Worldbuilding is the process of constructing an imaginary world or setting (narrative), setting, sometimes associated with a fictional universe. Developing the world with coherent qualities such as a history, geography, culture and ecology is a k ...

and do not actually "save the day".The Midas Flesh #8
reviewed by

, at ''

''; published July 28, 2014; retrieved August 19, 2021 The series was a finalist for the 2015

Joe Shuster Award The Joe Shuster Canadian Comic Book Creator Awards (or Joe Shuster Awards) are given out annually for outstanding achievements in the creation of comic books, graphic novels, webcomics, and comics retailers and publishers by Canadians. The awards, ...

, 'Comics for Kids' category.2015 Nominees and Winners
at the Joe Shuster Awards; retrieved August 19, 2021

History

North has stated that his inspiration for ''The Midas Flesh'' was a 2008 installment of his webcomic ''

Dinosaur Comics ''Dinosaur Comics'' is a constrained webcomic by Canadian writer Ryan North. It is also known as "Qwantz", after the site's domain name, "qwantz.com". The first comic was posted on February 1, 2003, although there were earlier prototypes. ''Din ...

'', in which he described the basic plot; "shortly after", he wrote the first version of the comic's script. He has credited the experience of writing that script (which he describes as having had a "really cool" story, but "cardboard haractersI didn't like") as having given him the confidence to accept Boom! Studios' offer to write the comic book adaptation of ''

Adventure Time ''Adventure Time'' is an American fantasy animated television series created by Pendleton Ward and co-produced by Frederator Studios for Cartoon Network. The series follows the adventures of a boy named Finn the Human, Finn (Jeremy Shada) and ...

''.Ryan North Gives "The Midas Flesh" A Shine For BOOM!
by TJ Dietsch, at ''

''; published October 22, 2013; retrieved August 19, 2021

References

External links

Official siteInstallment of ''Dinosaur Comics'' that inspired ''The Midas Flesh''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Midas Flesh, The Boom! Studios limited series Space opera comics Classical mythology in comics