ADVANCE REVIEW:: SCRAPPER #1 (OF 6)

Do you like comics? What about dogs? Do you enjoy (reading about) dystopian Orwellian futures? If you answered yes to those questions then Scrapper may be the comic for you. From the mind of legendary video game creator Cliff Bleszinski (Gears of War, Fortnite) and multi-time Eisner Award nominee Alex De Campi comes Scrapper a brand-new kind of hero.

In the comic space, for all its varied and fantastic heroes, from super-humans to aliens from the most distant parts of the galaxy, there’s actual a dearth of super canines. Shoutout to Krypto (Superman’s doggo sidekick) and Cosmo (who’s getting her chance to shine in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3) but that is kinda it. So enter Scrapper, a fearless dog out for justice.

The setting is New Verona, your typical futuristic city filled with robotic centurions bullying it’s citizens on behalf of the conglomerate SMITE. A company that is clearly evil since monopoly is literally in their name (Special Monopoly for Industrial Tech & Engineering).

This debut issue kicks things off giving cyberpunk/noir vibes and introduces Scrapper as an introspective, brooding hero watching over his city from a rooftop at night. Yeah, he’s Batman. And while many of us love dogs a natural question of how cool can Scrapper be as an action hero is a reasonable one. It’s a question answered by some amazing art and storyboarding. Scrapper takes on flying cars and robots and looks dang cool doing it. Not the easiest feat but artist Sandy Jarrell does an excellent job. And the art outside of the action scenes is just as well done with the entire project giving visual nods to the Golden Age of comics art style. Think the OG Action Comics of the 1940s meeting one of your favorite comics of today.

The writing is also on point. Scrapper is cool, and his buddy Tank (a grizzled talking pooch) may be even cooler. There’s also a genuine laugh out loud moment involving talking pigeons I won’t spoil but you’ll know it when you see it. As a lead protagonist, Scrapper is more than meets the eye which is saying a lot since he’s already a crime-fighting talking dog. And Scrapper #1 hits all the debut issue checkpoints. There’s backstory, there’s world-building. It also provides a taste of Scrapper’s powers and a tease of something more.

If the George Orwell novels “1984” and “Animal Farm” were mashed together and put in comic book form in the year 2023, Scrapper would be the result. The parallels between SMITE and Big Brother are clear and Scrapper is going need to rally is fellow animal brethren to fight the power and at least try to create a more just and equal society.

Finally, Scrapper #1 is a pup-filled superhero romp filled with action and intrigue. This new series delivers a new spin on the dystopian future with a truly unique new hero. Man’s best friend is now man’s best hope. This is a new series worth checking out.

Writing – 4 Stars
Art – 4 Stars
Coloring – 4 Stars

Overall – 4 Stars

Written by; Cliff Bleszinski and Alex De Campi
Art by; Sandy Jarrell
Colors by; Sandy Jarrell
Letters by; Alex De Campi
Published by; Image Comics

In Shops:
Jul 19, 2023

Author Profile

Christopher R. Ford

Writer, author, and blogger. Published author of three children's books and also writes for the boy Creators For The Culture. Part-time sneaker head, full time nerd.