The Glass Scientists
{{Short description|Young adult webcomic}}
{{italic title}}
{{Infobox comic strip|publisher=Self-published online; Penguin Random House in-print|began=2015|website=https://www.theglassscientists.com|creator=Sage Cotugno|illustrator=Sage Cotugno, Julia Elliott, Lucy Xue, Tiina Purin{{Cite web |last=Cotugno |first=Sage |title=About |url=https://www.theglassscientists.com/about |access-date=2024-03-11 |website=The Glass Scientists}}|image=The Glass Scientists print edition cover.png}}
The Glass Scientists is a young adult webcomic by Sage Cotugno (published as S.H. Cotugno), published both in-print and online. Set in the Victorian era, it is inspired by the Gothic novel Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The comic follows a world after the infamous Dr. Frankenstein's death, as a group of "rogue scientists" and socialite Jekyll tries to pull themselves out of disrepute.
Plot
The comic is set in London in the Victorian era filled with magic and supernatural monsters. Thirty years since the death of the infamous Dr. Frankenstein, the citizens are still fearful of the supernatural, threatening the arcane scientists who reside in London. One socialite and scientist Henry Jekyll has founded an organization called Society for Arcane Science, where a group of "rogue scientists" could continue their work in secret. They and Jekyll hope to improve their reputation and allow arcane science to flourish under public eye. However, after a failed experiment on himself, Jekyll has come to live in the same body with a chaotic version of himself, who calls himself Hyde.
Publication
After first releasing the comic online in 2015, Sage Cotugno writes and draws the series.{{Cite web |last=Cotugno |first=S. H. |date=2023-10-02 |title=Mad Science for the Modern Reader, a guest post by S. H. Cotugno |url=https://teenlibrariantoolbox.com/2023/10/02/mad-science-for-the-modern-reader-a-guest-post-by-s-h-cotugno/ |access-date=2024-03-11 |website=Teen Librarian Toolbox |language=en-US}} They are a California Institute of the Arts graduate with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in character animation. In a 2022 auction, publisher Penguin Random House bought the right to publish the comic as a graphic novel.{{Cite web |last=Johnston |first=Rich |date=2022-03-15 |title=Sabrina Cotugno Auctions Glass Scientists Webcomic For Six Figures |url=https://bleedingcool.com/comics/sabrina-cotugno-auctions-glass-scientists-webcomic-for-six-figures/ |access-date=2024-03-11 |website=Bleeding Cool |language=en}} The publisher's Razorbill division released the first volume's print edition in October 3, 2023,{{Cite web |date=August 11, 2023 |title=The Glass Scientists |url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/sabrina-cotugno/the-glass-scientists/ |access-date=March 11, 2024 |website=Kirkus Reviews}} edited by Chris Hernandez.{{Cite web |last=Ramirez |first=Amanda |date=September 26, 2023 |title=Four Questions for S.H. Cotugno |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-authors/article/93261-four-questions-for-s-h-cotugno.html |access-date=2024-03-11 |website=Publishers Weekly |language=en}} The print edition of the second volume was released on September 24, 2024, this time by G. P. Putnam's Sons, an imprint of Penguin Random House.{{Cite book |url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/sabrina-cotugno/the-glass-scientists-volume-2/ |title=The Glass Scientists Volume 2 |publisher=Kirkus Reviews |publication-date=June 15, 2024 |language=en}} The final third volume is set to release on December 2, 2025.{{Cite web |title=The Glass Scientists: Volume Three by S. H. Cotugno: 9780593524527 |url=https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/702475/the-glass-scientists-volume-three-by-s-h-cotugno/ |access-date=2025-04-08 |website=PenguinRandomhouse.com |language=en-US}}
Reception
A critic in Kirkus Reviews said that the first volume makes "interesting narrative promises" to be fulfilled by the next volume. The School Library Journal commented the series combines historical and science fiction, and its themes relate to TJ Klune's book The House in the Cerulean Sea.{{Cite web |last=Abdul |first=Alicia |date=November 1, 2023 |title=The Glass Scientists |url=https://www.slj.com/review/the-glass-scientists |access-date=2024-03-11 |website=School Library Journal}} Gizmodo praised the dialogue, saying that while it is "charming", it also has the "undertone of nasty things left unspoken".{{Cite web |last=Davis |first=Lauren |date=2015-08-19 |title=In This Webcomic, Dr. Jekyll Tries to Make Mad Science a Respectable Profession |url=https://gizmodo.com/in-this-webcomic-dr-jekyll-tries-to-make-mad-science-1725087382 |access-date=2024-03-11 |website=Gizmodo |language=en}} Literary magazine Booklist said "the gothic atmosphere is in fun contrast to the cartoonish figures and action."{{Cite web |title=The Glass Scientists, v. 1 |url=http://www.booklistonline.com/The-Glass-Scientists-v-1-By-S-H-Cotugno/pid=9777409 |website=Booklist Online}}
Kirkus Reviews praised the second volume for its handling of "LGBTQ+ friendships and romance, classism, and subversion of the patriarchy".
References
External links
- [https://www.cartoonbrew.com/comics/the-glass-scientists-s-h-cotugno-webcomic-graphic-novel-231777.html Cartoon Brew interview]
- [https://www.comicsbeat.com/interview-s-h-cotugno-on-their-queer-spooky-graphic-novel-the-glass-scientists-volume-one/ ComicsBeat interview]