I've been reading Stray Bullets since very early on, but I haven't really reviewed the book of late. The short version of the review is "buy the trades if you don't have them already." The slightly longer version is "but if you want a sampler of the style and tone of the book, this issue's a good one to try." Stray Bullets #39 is a bizarre, off-the-beaten-path combination of Kurosawa samurai flicks, the darkly humorous crime vibe of the regular book and a constantly shifting, almost entirely made up story told from the perspective of Amy Racecar, the most memorable of Lapham's twisted protagonists. The story is both parody and homage to its samurai source material, with a narrative style that is laugh out loud funny and beautiful artwork to keep the reader's attention. Even if you've never read Stray Bullets before, if you have a fondness for the samurai genre and a sense of humor about it as well, this is an issue to check into.
It's always fun to read the Amy Racecar stories in Stray Bullets. Amy Racecar is the fictional, uber-capable alter-ego of damaged little girl Virginia, and her stories always read like the stories a young, mentally scarred girl might write. Amy is always ready with a witty comeback, superbly capable physically and mentally and so in control that she actually changes the story as she goes along. It's hilarious to watch Amy move the goalposts in this story, lying to the reader and the off-panel judges about what happened to get her to this place. The rules are right out the window in an Amy Racecar story, and so we've got samurai driving cars, evil henchman packing pistols in feudal Japan, evil twins, ghosts and plenty more.
Beyond the humor inherent in the flexible structure of this issue, there are a lot of really funny moments. Amy's admission that she slashed the tires so her companion wouldn't complain that they were out of gas, the item she carries around for self-defense, the names of car and electronic companies used for all the bad guys, these are clues that a little girl is telling stories based on what little she knows, but they're also really funny in context. In addition, Lapham brings an obvious love for the samurai genre here, with some terrific fight sequences and several amusing references to Yojimbo, Seven Samurai and Rashomon throughout the story. I enjoyed Stray Bullets #39 in no small part because it had me laughing on just about every page, but I shouldn't undersell the strength of the action. Think of Tarantino on Kill Bill, mixing humor with homage to grindhouse fare, and you've got a general idea.
Lapham's artwork is also exceptional here. Much of the humor in the book comes from his over-the-top depiction of a brutalized village or the swift, violent skill that Amy has with her sword. In addition, the disbelief of William, her traveling companion, comes through as much in his exasperated facial expressions and gesticulations as in the dialogue, while the villains reek of a pure, cartoonish villainy that is absolutely appropriate to the story at hand.
While the larger story of Stray Bullets may never be fulfilled, every issue adds something interesting to the tapestry, and the best issues, like this one, are enjoyable on their own terms even if you don't know the characters and what has gone before. There's also a nice Easter Egg for parents who have watched way too much Dora the Explorer in the letter column, and though it took me a few paragraphs to catch on, when I did, I wound up laughing like a goon. Lapham has a twisted and clever sense of humor, and when paired with his excellent draftsmanship, that makes for an exceptional (if all-too-rarely-published) indy gem.
