Title: Reed Gunther (Click to go to the release post)
Writer(s): Shane Houghton (Click to see other books from this writer released on this site)
Review source: niall (Review 1) and Doug Zawisza (Review 2) (Don't click it, read the review here... )
Review:
- Review 1 - Reed Gunther #2 - Reed Gunther is the newly coloured re-publishing of a previously self-published black and white comic. The initial four issues will be updated versions of the black and white content and this will be followed by all new adventures.
Reed Gunter is about a cowboy (Reed Gunther) and his partner Sterling, who also happens to be a bear. The first issue sees Reed and Sterling teaming up with a female rancher to help protect her herd from a giant snake.
Generally this was a good opening issue; the story was simple and entertaining as Reed, Sterling and the rancher clash over the best way to go about the task at hand. There were some funny moments, although I think there could have been more, but a cowboy that has a bear instead of a horse is enough to please me (and surely most kids too).
The art is fun and cartoony in style and Reed and Sterling make some great facial expressions. The best art was actually on the cover, but that is not to say that the interior art wasn’t very well done too. I haven’t seen the black and white version of this comic, but the colours look great and surely enhance the characters and action.
As an all ages book I found it just as enjoyable as Super Dinosaur and I’m sure kids will love it as well. While Reed didn’t ride Sterling as much as I would have liked, I’m sure there is plenty of that to come in future issues.
Overall it was a solid start for Reed Gunther and I look forward to the subsequent issues.
Review 2 - Reed Gunther #2 - As the summer months settle in, the comic events are getting more intense and entangled, with spin-offs, tie-ins, and crossovers aplenty. Sometimes you just need to put those to the side and read a good old comic about cowboys riding grizzly bears. About the only thing more "made for comics" than cowboys on bare-bearback is gorillas riding dinosaurs. There's no gorillas here, though, as Reed Gunther brings his wild and wacky west adventures into the second issue published by Image Comics.
The brothers Houghton, while content to leave the first issue as a standalone tale, bring enough characters and history (well, after one issue, there isn't much "history," but there is some) into this second issue to make it a more rewarding tale for those familiar with this first issue of the series. The three main characters – titular gunslinger, Reed Gunther; his trusty transport and sidekick, Sterling; and Reed's galpal, Starla – return from the first adventure and make their presence known in this issue.
This issue of "Reed Gunther" is exuberant in the same way that the doodles in the margins from last week's meeting notes kept you going through that meeting. There's a raw enthusiasm in Chris Houghton's artwork that really injects life into the story. Chris' work is well thought out and planned that it's not very difficult to imagine the in-betweens that occur between panels, as though this issue were a series of cels from a Reed Gunther cartoon assembled as a print version (or digital facsimile thereof) for expedited review.
Unlike many comics today, this story is fun and enjoyable, providing an adventure with consequences, but never taking itself too seriously. It's clear that the Houghton brothers are trying to deliver a fun book here, and it succeeds. If you're buying this book expecting something in the vein of "Jonah Hex," you're going to be mistaken, but if you want a western adventure that plays up the "adventure" and the "wild" of the Old West, then this book is for you.
Worthy of an "all ages" label without pandering to either side of the age spectrum, this issue just shows that there's no separating a cowboy and his bear.
More info:
- Written by Shane Houghton
Art by Chris Houghton
Colors by Chris Houghton, Jose Flores, Shane Houghton, Kassandra Heller [more...]
Cover by Chris Houghton
Publisher: Image Comics
Post rewarded by Ojay on Aug 6th, 2011, 1:39 pm. |
5 WRZ$ reward as announced in Comics News. Nice reviewed. Thanks! |