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October 27, 2004
Subway Reading
Son of the Gun #1 - Whoah! This was a cool book. I'm really glad DC launched its Humanoids imprint, because it gives me a chance to see some of the best contemporary European comics that I would otherwise miss out on.
This story is the epic tale of Juan, the deadliest, most cold-hearted S.O.B. in the South American city of Huatuclo. Writer Alexandro Jodorowsky deftly depolys a series of symbols to establish the depths out of which Juan has to climb: as a baby, he is found abandoned in a garbage dump. Not only does he have a tail, but he nurses from a junkyard dog alongside other puppies. His pacifier is a pistol. Unsurprisingly, he grows up to live by a nihilistic dog-eat-dog credo, and his lack of morals enables him to thrive in the violent and corrupt society in which he lives.
Artist Georges Bess deserves special mention for his work on this book. I was not familiar with his work but I am now eager to search out more of it. He employs a realistic yet fluid drawing style, with inking that can only be described as masterful. Like the work of the best cartoonitsts, his art comes to life in the inking stage. There is a sort of Jack Davis/Joe Kubert feel to his loose lines and confident hatching. The way he spots his blacks to create depth is impeccable. Surface-level craft aside, his storytelling, layout, character design, and depiction of the setting are some of the biggest reasons why I enjoyed this book so much. The heavy-lidded eyes that he gives to Juan convey the "dead inside" nature of the character. The designs of the Prime Minister's goon squad are clever and memorable. Bess demonstrates a knowledge of the craft of cartooning that is rarely if ever glimpsed in contemporary American comics.
I do have one complaint with this book, and that is with the production value. I think much of the problem can be traced to the choice of paper stock for the interior. It's got a bit of a rough texture and a matte finish, and the result is that it sucks up too much of the ink. The colors end up dulled and muddy, and even worse, Bess' incredible line work loses its crispness. Finally, a couple of the pages were mis-registered. That is to say, the 4 printing plates were not lined up perfectly. The result is that the magenta, for example, prints about 1/16th of an inch to the left of the cyan, yellow and black, and the images get fuzzy and blurry. For the $17.95 cover price, I would expect a better package.
Finally, there is something else that I feel I have to mention. Halfway through the story Juan gives himself a last name. Because he has always been a loner, he decides his name will be "Juan Solo." I can only assume that this is one of those quirks of translation, and that in its original language, his name did not come off like that of a character in some kind of awful ethinc slur of a Star Wars parody.
All in all this was an entertaining and rewarding read which I highly recommend. 5 stars.
Posted by jdonelson_nyc at October 27, 2004 02:10 PM