Gun Vol. 1 – Comic Review
It’s Wednesday, it’s New Comic Book Day, so it’s obviously time for another review. Gun Vol. 1 – Fighting is my Monday is an alternative take on comic book superheroes and super villains.
Gun Vol. 1 collects together the first three issues of Gun – Fighting Is My Monday, Strange Bedfellows and Capes, into a 120 page soft cover and OH WOW. Written and hand painted by Jack Foster, Gun is one of the most unique comics I’ve had the pleasure of reading in some time.
Synopsis
Meet small time super crook Trevor Werner; bruised, beautiful Olive Armstrong and the supercriminal underworld they make their two-fisted, twisted way through.
When Trevor, bruised, beautiful Olive Armstrong and aging radical Agent Orange stumble upon the body of a left-for-dead super hero the plan is simple: ransom the hero at a black auction and split the take – of course, like all simple plans, things go sideways…
Capes and Guns
So in the world that Foster has created, Superheroes and their nemeses are pretty commonplace. The good guys are Capes and the bad guys are called Guns. It’s a noir-esque twist that you think would signal the overall tone and direction of the comic but it absolutely doesn’t. I’ve been sitting here for about twenty minutes trying to come up with a witty comparison that sums it up. Every time I think I’ve got something, I remember another aspect of the comic and completely change my mind. It is an anti-hero comic, but that’s about as defined as I can get it.
The art is outstanding. Doubling up on both writing and art duties means that Gun is, one presumes, EXACTLY as Foster imagines in his head. Which is pretty special. Stylistically we get a little of everything. The noir-esque prelude gives way to Golden Age vibes (albeit with a twist) through to Cyberpunk. Hell there is one page in the second issue that gave off such strong echoes of Gustav Klimt I actually stopped and sat here for good few minutes just gazing at it.
I absolutely loved the narration, it put me in mind of the wonderful internal monologue stylings of Dexter. Greg Sorkin does a wonderful job on lettering duties, tailoring seamlessly to the wonderfully meandering art styles. This is most noticeable in the second issue, Strange Bedfellows, where there are a number of interludes that introduce the reader to some of the denizens of the Mermaid Lounge. Each one reflects, in the art and lettering, the unique personality of the individual being described.
Bonus Features
As I previously mentioned, Gun Vol. 1 collects together the first 3 issues for the first time. It also includes some bonus material, such as Who’s Who character sheets, and some background on how Gun came to be. I actually really enjoyed the author’s story on the origins of Gun, it added some more depth to an already excellent comic.
Gun Vol. 1 is available now from the Gun Comic Shop, Comixology, Amazon and iTunes.
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