The Next Fix

I love reading about odysseys and quests. I particularly dig road stories (I thought Cormac McCarthy's The Road was pretty good. Still trying to reconcile the whole Pulitzer thing, though. Frankly, I've read better post-apocalyptic journey novels). I've only published one road story myself, but I've had a longer one in mind for a while and I look forward to writing it one of these days. There's something about a road story that really appeals to me.

Why is this relevant? Because recently I had the chance to check out the first stanza in what might just be an epic road story. I'm talking about American Wasteland: Blood & Diesel, the first issue of a new comic series from Arcana Studio.

Arcana is one of the more impressive and accomplished indie comic labels out there. I've dug on titles like Kade, Ezra, and 100 Girls, and some of the new stuff they're developing right now is pretty exciting. I've actually been meaning to talk with Terry about doing a feature on them for Murky Depths. I've also gotten to know a few of the writers/artists working on projects with them via MySpace. One of them, Jason Flowers, designed the limited edition Feral Twins t-shirt I had printed last year. Another guy I talk with off and on is R.D. Hall, hard-workin' screenwriter and scribe, and the guy who scripted the comic book I'm about to run down for you guys.

American Wasteland is a four-part series about Cletus McCoy, a protagonist equal parts Jack Burton, Jesse Custer, and Brock Samson (and if none of those names ring a bell, you really have no business reading this review). Cletus is a trucker who's taken a difficult run hauling Slug's Lager. What makes the run so difficult? Why, the population slowly turning into legions of demonic ghouls, of course. Now Cletus has to roll hard for home in time to save his beloved chain-smoking mother from the flesh-devouring hordes. In his way are more of the fiends, the military, and what looks to be a whole host of Lynchian characters. Throw in a mysterious collar-wearing kid named Sumbitch (so named because when Cletus first encounters him that's the only thing the lad seems able to say) with an undead desperado named Johnny Copperhead after him for unknown reasons, as well as a cliffhanger ending, and you've got more than blood and diesel, you've got a genuinely intriguing tale. I want to know what happens next. And that's the signature ingredient in any serialized story.

This is my kinda book. It's Evil Dead on the move. How can you go wrong? Hall's writing excels at smooth, original dialogue, deft humor, and creating distinct characters that you find yourself empathizing with by their third or fourth panel. The latter is a talent that should not be taken for granted. Guys like Frank Miller and David Mack have to fill inch-thick captions or an entire sidebar with text to achieve the kind of character development usually only found in novels. Making you like and give a shit about somebody in the span of four panels with just a few talk bubbles is an accomplishment. Mark Kidwell's sketches are fuckin' beautiful. The monsters and the gore recall EC Comics while the people and scenery put me in mind of guys like Steve Dillion with a more cartoonish slant to the faces. And I particularly dig the mood of the ink and shading, courtesy of Tony Bledsoe and Jay Fotos. It's a color-rich world, but the colors are rendered in dingy shades, giving it a worn texture. It's vibrant and muted at the same time, like the entire world has a weird filter over it. Very appropriate.

The production is also top shelf. I remember when indie comics were a rough grain affair with powdery ink copying, and when you were done reading them your hands looked like you'd been finger banging that smoke monster from Lost. How far we've come. Arcana publishes a very slick, professional comic book. The back cover alignment is a little off, but that was the only thing I noticed and it has nothing to do with the issue itself.

Final analysis: I'd rather spend four bucks on an issue of American Wasteland than 90% of the shit DC and Marvel are currently peddling. It gets my lead pipe recommendation. Which means read it or I'll come to your house and fuckin' beat you with a lead pipe.


American Wasteland on MySpace