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‘Living with Death: Murder at Oxford #1‘ – Comic Book Review

Living with Death: Murder at Oxford is, so far at least, a story about a female Sherlock Holmes. Which, in and of itself, sounds great. I love intelligent, complex female characters, and Stephanie Hawkins, the main character in this story, definitely has potential in that area. But, the thing is, in this first issue at least, she’s just a little TOO much like Sherlock Holmes.

She’s brilliant at analyzing seemingly insignificant facts and drawing almost superhuman conclusions. She’s also confident to the point of arrogance and seemingly detached and indifferent when it comes to people, which makes her come off as rude and generally hopeless at social interactions. She has a Watson-like assistant named Jenna Wakefield, from whose point of view the story is told. And, she even does that thing where she analyzes Jenna within moments of meeting her and tells her all kinds of incredibly specific things about herself, deduced from a few simple observations—a device which has become somewhat of a tired cliché over the years. This is definitely Sherlock Holmes through and through. Even the two main characters’ initials are the same as their Victorian counterparts.

The problem with that is that between Robert Downey Jr., Benedict Cumberbatch, and Jonny Lee Miller, we already have a minimum of three different prominent Sherlock Holmes characters in current mainstream media. So, Murder at Oxford feels, in many places, like it’s retreading old territory. It doesn’t really set itself apart as its own story.

It does have plenty of potential to set itself apart in future issues. As the title implies, this isn’t just “Female Sherlock Holmes,” it’s “Female Sherlock Holmes in College.” It’s also set in the ’80s. All these elements could be used to weave a truly unique story. Or they could be used as cheap gimmicks. So far, none is explored in depth, but then, it’s only the first issue.

The story opens, somewhat oddly, in 1999, with Jenna Wakefield lamenting the death of her best friend, Stephanie Hawkins. She then reminisces on their first meeting in 1982, when the murder of pretty and popular Oxford student Georgia Long brings them together. The university administration wants to keep the incident as quiet as possible, but Stephanie takes it upon herself to investigate by questioning people involved with the case. She discovers a number of important clues, but, at the same time, succeeds in offending both people she talks to (including Jenna) with her bluntness and complete lack of social skills.

Here’s the thing: the story is actually pretty interesting so far. Or it looks like maybe it could be. And, there’s definite potential for it to set itself apart as more than just a female Sherlock Homes clone. That’s what it is on the surface, but there are hints throughout that there’s more going than just what we’ve seen so far. If they can steer clear of the typical Holmes clichés (or better yet, turn them on their heads) and focus on the things that make this story unique, it could add up to a really fun and compelling adventure. We’ll see how things play out in the next issue.

Steven W. Alloway, Fanbase Press Contributor

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