Hello, faithful readers! WAY back a year or so ago, I read and reviewed a comic called Blood and Gourds. It was this crazy mish-mosh of greedy corporate fat cats doing bad things with hill-billies, hot farmers’ daughters, and tourists all mixing it up with angry, hell-ish… produce.
Specifically pumpkins (and presumably their derivatives – gourds).
The comic was fun, gory, and frenetic. By the time I started to understand what might be happening, the comic was over. This was in May 2015. I promptly traveled the world, met celebrities, and made my fortune… not even wondering what was happening in the world of Blood and Gourds.
Well, it turns out our writers/creators (Jenz Lund and D.H. Shultis) have been busy. They’ve created Issue #2 in the series! I was ecstatic to be tapped to continue my review of their art, and here we are. Here is what I think.
It is good.
Seriously – they’ve take the relative chaos of Issue #1 and started in on some themes, character development ,and backstory. It’s clear what their influences might be: Army of Darkness, Evil Dead, Coen Brothers in general, The Shining (movie), the Alien franchise. Lots of nods and references in this comic, from the very obvious to the very subtle.
What I specifically liked about the comic is the intelligence. Where Issue #1 was a shock-fest (to me), #2 has a more sophisticated sense of itself, inclusive of a sense of humor. The story itself isn’t entirely original – we’ve all seen stuff like this before – but it is aware of this and pokes fun. Overall, the writing is excellent – an improvement over #1.
The art continues to be awesome. It evokes autumn (which is good, since it takes place in autumn – duh). Lots of bright colors and incredible imagery. Also, lots and lots and lots of bloodshed. So, you’ve been warned.
Should you read it? Yep – ideally just before Halloween.
Bottom line, the only problem with this comic is the timing. With 16+/- months between installments, it’s too long a wait. Hopefully, we’ll see an amalgamation at some point – which will be what I’ll be looking to add to my collection.
Anywho – nice chatting. I recommend giving a look to this (and their first issue) comic, Blood and Gourds.
Simply Jack
