MINI-MADNESS… ONCE MORE UNTO THE BREACH!

This is a very special column for me. Because these are the last minis I have left to review from the San Diego Comic-Con. Yay!

ACE FEDORA: PRIVATE EYE
Written by Chris Grumprich and Drawn by Jason Rainey
Published by Arctic Star Studios

This is a quiet little tale about a man stuck in a boring office job with a large imagination. The lead character, an accountant, is saddled with tracking down some missing funds, and he let’s his thoughts run wild, pretending he’s a Sam Spade style gumshoe helping a damsel in distress, rather than his tightly buttoned down female boss. It’s nothing deeply original, but it’s drawn nicely, produced well, and an entertaining eight pages. Grade: B

COW PUNCH BOOK ONE
Written and Drawn by Porter McDonald
Available at Cow Punch

This is truly a mini comic. Printed at 3x5, McDonald takes actual photographs and draws over and doctors them to create four panel gags. It’s a nifty idea, and although it isn’t executed brilliantly on every page, I found it well worth my time and I admired the effort involved. It gave me another idea for how to do minis of my own someday, assuming I ever find that extra ten hours in a day. Grade: B+

RAIDER BOOK TWO: A COLD DAY IN HEAVEN
Written and Drawn by Thom Zahler
Published by Maerkle Press

Zahler was selling this preview to his second RAIDER graphic novel, and reading it, I would guess that I have really missed something, because this is very good. The story, pacing, and art all grabbed me and had me enthralled. RAIDER is an espionage tale, and yet also a mystery. Two things I like. It also has interesting characters, some well-scripted dialogue, and attitude to spare. I’m going to have to dig up the graphic novels and review them over in my MoviePoopShoot column. Grade: A

COOL JERK
Written and Drawn by Paul Horn
Available at Cool Jerk

This was another strong mini I found at the con. Horn is a former syndicated cartoonist, and this strip, born while he was in college, was his baby. COOL JERK is a well-drawn, clever, and quite funny little strip. Horn comes from the same school of thought that begat comics folks like Martin Wagner, Judd Winick, and Frank Cho. He ought to think about getting more ambitious with this stuff. Grade: A-

BIKINI AUTOMATIC #4
Written and Drawn by Ken and Maggie Wright
Available from Ken Wright Online

I reviewed issues 1-3 of this little lark of a book last Spring. BA is the story of a hottie super agent charged with protecting the beach from madmen like Banana Bob. The gloves she wears can produce any weapon she needs from thin air at the sound of her voice. Wright draws in an “animated” style, and BIKINI AUTOMATIC is generally a hoot. This issue actually makes an excellent case against the concept of the nude beach as part of its fun. The Wrights seem to understand that this is the perfect format for BA, as trying to push it further would weaken the concept; smart folks. Grade: B+

GENTLEMAN ZOMBIE
Written by Joshua Williamson and Drawn by Jacob Glaser
Published by Big Boss Comics

This eight-page mini is a tease for what is apparently an upcoming ongoing series or graphic novel. Displaying some rough art that appears as though it will be quite lovely when finished, there’s enough here to tantalize the palate for more of the story. On the downside, in these eight pages, we never actually see or meet the GENTLEMAN ZOMBIE. Kinda odd. It’s difficult to say whether or not the final product will be a winner, but this is a decent enough start. Could have used eight more pages, though, even if it was only sketches that showed a bit more about the lead character. Grade: B-

KID JUSTICE
Written by Joshua Williamson and Drawn by Vicente Navarrete
Published by Big Boss Comics

This is a stronger effort from Williamson that brings a lot more story to the table. The main character is not only a teen superhero, he’s also the son of the President of the United States… his Mother. We get to see the character fight a battle, deal with school pressures like bullies and nasty administrators, plus face up to his White House handlers. The concept may sound hokey, but it has a lot of appeal to a wider audience, and I think larger doses would go down quite well. Backgrounds aren’t what Navarrete does best, but on a mini, that isn’t as much of a factor. Grade: B+

If you’ll pardon me, I’m going to go spike a football.

/Mason