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7 GUYS OF JUSTICE #11-12
Mildly Recommended (6/10)
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False Idol Studios
Writer: Brian Joines
Artist: Joshua Rowe
Letters: Michael Thomas
Price: $2.00 US |
These two issues of 7 Guys of Justice represent the finale of the Mussolini/Nazi virus storyline, and they're a pretty good indication of what you get with the series. How much you enjoy the issues will depend largely on your appreciation for super-hero cliches and the humor inherent in them and how many super-hero parodies you've read in your time. I've read a fair amount of parody, and 7 Guys falls in the middle as far as
laugh quotient, but there are some very entertaining ideas, and it succeeds on a
story level, whereas many parodies will just deluge their readers with
one-liners and puns. The book wasn't laugh out loud funny for me most of the
time, but there were a couple good chuckles, and the setting for the final
battle was pure genius.
Joines has a very good sense of story structure. 7 Guys contains a lot of story,
more than I'd expect from a parody book. In addition to a well-developed main
conflict, there are a couple subplots with other heroes and villains that are
leading up to other stories in the future. To recap, most of the 7 Guys have
been taken over by a virus that turns them into Nazis, complete with the ability
to speak fluent German. The only hope against the Nazi-fied team and their
leader, the preserved head of Benito Mussolini, is the dumb-as-rocks Lord Talon
and a pair of unknown heroes known as Dung Beetle and the Human Poop. Meanwhile,
the Hunter-Gatherer remains on the trail of a hero killer. I'm impressed at the
way Joines matches up the cliches of the super-hero genre, including the
mind-controlled team, the mysterious allies and the World War II era villain and
science threat, with an over-the-top sense of humor that makes them even more
ridiculous than they might already be.
 7 Guys is full of
appreciation for super-heroes and their style, including a Blue Beetle/Batman
pastiche in the form of Dung Beetle and a variety of plotting/subplot devices
that read like work from any number of DC and Marvel comics. While this does
make for a very readable story, that affection for the genre often makes the
humor a little bit too gentle, whereas parody could really use more bite. Which
is not to say that there isn't humor to be found, of course. The stupidity of
Talon, though very much like The Tick, is always amusing, and pairing him with
the equally dim Human Poop made for some hilarious moments as well. And there
are any number of funny moments from Mussolini, who is an incompetent and
amusing super-villain.
By far the best idea of those
two issues, though, sees the conflict between the heroes, mind-controlled heroes
and villains developing in the middle of a big football game. In addition to
some funny gags about the panda-based uniforms and mascots of the
mind-controlled home team, this allows Joines to tell the story through the eyes
of football commentators. He captures the stupid banter style perfectly, going
so far as to include a hilarious cameo from Scott McCloud (there to speak about
breaking the fourth wall) and a less funny appearance by Dennis Miller (whose
love for obscure references, when exaggerated, is not as funny as many writers
think it is).
In terms of art, 7 Guys still has a ways to go. It has been clear from
the start that Joines and Rowe have a lot of enthusiasm, but they are still
learning their craft. However, if you compare early issues to later ones, you
can see vast improvement in Rowe's artwork. While he could still use a lot more
detail on backgrounds especially, and his facial expressions and costume designs
are often simple, the storytelling is outstanding. In addition, there are hints
of development in his style with the occasional more detailed face or body,
particularly with the Human Poop or Mussolini in issues eleven and
twelve.
Email Randy Lander comments about this review, or discuss it on the Fourth Rail message board. |
