Skullkickers #18

Written by Justin Jordan, Blair Butler, Charles Soule, J. Torres, John Layman, and Aubrey Sitterson
Art by Tradd Moore, Enrique Rivera, Michael Mayne, Alberto J. Alburquerque, Rob Guillory, and Ivan Anaya

In some ways, I think I prefer the 'Tavern Tales' issues of Skullkickers that show up between story arcs more than I do the actual comic itself sometimes.  This latest version, 'Son of Tavern Tales', has six short stories that more or less perfectly distill what makes Skullkickers work so well.

The book opens with the Luther Strode team of Justin Jordan and Tradd Moore (who clearly has never seen another picture of a dwarf).  Their story is cute and amusing, as is the one after it by Blair Butler and Enrique Rivera.

Charles Soule and Michael Mayne give us a great story about the world's best beer, and the strange creature that makes it so great.  J. Torres and Alberto J. Alburquerque show what happens with role playing games get out of hand (always zombies).

The Chew team provide the best story in this book, as our favourite mercenaries try to figure out a way to scam themselves free beer for life in a bar where the owner has an interest in collecting mythological    tail.  (I was hoping for a Poyo cameo, but no luck).

The final story, by Aubrey Sitterson and Ivan Anaya show that in medieval fantasy times, guilds operated much like unions do today.

This extra-sized issue was a nice treat.  This series is going on a bit of a hiatus until next year, and I look forward to its return, but I look even more forward to the Tavern Tales issue that comes after the next arc.

The Strange Talent of Luther Strode #2

Written by Justin Jordan
Art by Tradd Moore

It's very hard to read this comic without thinking about Kick-Ass, as it covers so much of the same ground (at least initially), but it also differentiates itself quite nicely.

Luther has been home from school for the last six weeks, after the incident that happened last issue with a school bully in the washroom.  Coming back, he's concerned that his new-found abilities (about which he's being very sanguine) and status in the school will cause him to be isolated, but seeing as he's always been isolated, I don't see how that could be an issue.  Quickly upon showing up, there is another confrontation with the same bully, and Petra, the girl he likes, comes on to him as strongly as possible.

The heart of this comic is the relationship between Petra and Luther.  She's an interesting character, choosing to do what she wishes (which includes climbing a ladder to visit him in his bedroom, which would not be an easy feat considering he lives in an apartment) and leading him on to the point of total confusion.  Jordan has introduced a threat, but has not really explained it yet.

This is a fun read.  Tradd Moore's art is still very reminiscent of what you would find in an issue of Invincible, and that works for this type of story very well.

The Strange Talent of Luther Strode #1

Written by Justin Jordan
Art by Tradd Moore

It's easy to not expect anything from this comic.  Two creators that I'm not familiar with are crafting a six-issue mini-series about an unhappy, geeky, skinny kid who sends away for a Charles Atlas-style booklet, and gains superpowers.  It's pretty much a cliché, right?  I wasn't going to get this book, but then I heard some positive buzz around it, and liked the art when I flipped through it at the store.

It's really a very good comic.  Sure, all of the elements that I mentioned above are overly familiar to anyone who's been reading comics for some time (or even just their ads), but Jordan is doing a few interesting things with it to make it stand out.

To begin with, he's leaving things for the reader to pick up on.  That Luther's mother is the victim of some sort of domestic abuse is an interesting element to the story, especially since it's not really explained.  Likewise, Luther's confusing relationship with Petra needs more screen time, because it is a little unconventional.

Clearly, the powers that Luther has tapped into by reading about the 'Hercules Method' will lead to trouble beyond practically knocking the head off the school bully.  There are a group of guys in chains, speaking with someone they call the Librarian, about a new potential candidate.  Later, this Librarian is shown on a boat, obviously coming to find Luther.

There are a few elements here which don't really make a lot of sense.  First, we have the overly erudite school jock, a figure which really only exists in comics these days (at least he's not as poorly written as Ronnie Raymond in last week's Firestorm #1).  Also, people still mail order from comic book ads?  Why doesn't the Hercules Method have a website?

What makes this book work is the way it mashes together influences like Kick-Ass, Invincible, Lee/Ditko Spider-Man, and Flex Mentallo.  The art is squarely in the Cory Walker and Ryan Ottley, especially when the blood gets flowing.  I found this to be a very enjoyable read, and will stick around for the rest of the mini-series.