The War at Ellsmere

Faith Erin Hicks’s The War at Ellsmere (2008–present, Slave Labor) is a single-issue comic that sets up a boarding school story with a supernatural twist, following a new student who discovers that her prestigious academy harbors a secret, ancient conflict. Hicks, writing and drawing the entire issue, brings her signature warm, expressive style to this self-contained debut, which matters as an early showcase of her talent for blending slice-of-life character work with fantasy elements.