Mind's Eye Comics Pick!! -- Black Tape #1

Black Tape #1, AWA Studios

Written By: Dan Panosian

Art By: Dalibor Talajic

After her rock musician husband unexpectedly passes away, Cindy is left picking up the pieces of their life. Everyone around her seems to want to honor the legend of her husband, Jack, but only she knows his secret desire to publish his own record away from the studio. At the funeral, and subsequent party, Cindy is approached by numerous people, including relatives of Jack, groupies and studio people, all expressing condolences and hinting at their own desires, intentions and agendas for the legacy of Jack. After the party, Cindy stumbles onto a secret that will change everything she thought she knew about her husband.

Taking place in 1973, Black Tape is a slice of life tale in the peak of the rock 'n roll, drinking and high drug use days of the 1970's. While Jack and his band may be fictional, writer Dan Panosian actually seems to capture that era very well, along with the exceptional artwork by Dalibor Talajic, creating a sense of tension with each character who approaches Cindy. Coincidently, I am currently reading a novel called "Daisy Jones and the Six," another fictional tale of a 1970's era band, and the drinking, drugs and lifestyle that exuded itself in that era, so I was fully in the mindset for this comic book. If this is something you enjoy, and I think you will, Daisy Jones is a great novel, and soon to be a streaming mini-series on Prime. Honestly, the two go hand in hand, while Black Tape certainly uses the graphic novel format to its advantage, hinting at the supernatural in the final pages.