REVIEW: Chum #3 (of 3)
This dark tale of sex and love and everything in between from ComixTribe, comes to a climax this week.
When we last left the inhabitants of Kingsford, Standard had been shot by ex-wife Summer, who seemed to be the bait that various sharks circled. How things change. This issue, Summer is on the run, trying once and for all to leave the island that seems to have darkened her life in one way or another. However it seems that you can take the girl out of Kingsford, but can’t take Kingsford out of the girl.
I am a big Ryan K. Lindsay fan. I loved his Dark Horse book Negative Space and I have thoroughly enjoyed the first two issues of this mini series. That said, this issue take a near Pulp Fiction-esque turn with the sublime retreating into the ridiculous. Summer’s motivations are clear, but the actions taken become more and more desperate and as such, the ramifications a tad unrealistic. For the most part, this book has covered the quiet desperation of a life lived, trying to make the best of a bad situation. This paradigm is turned slightly into the worst of a bad situation. Lindsay’s dialogue is still enjoyable, finally showing once and for all as if you were in any doubt, who the real shark of the island really is.
Co-creator Sami Kivela continues to produce some strong art. In all honesty, it’s Kivela that has been a bit of a revelation. As mentioned previously, Kivela has worked on Grimm books which is fair to say, hasn’t allow his work to develop as much as it has on this book. As this is the conclusion, as with the majority of the run, it’s more talky with the action scenes remaining sparse. Still, Kivela manages to create a lot of momentum in what in others hand could have been static panels. As with previous issues, Kivale is aided and abetted by colorist Mark Dale who appears to have found his red ink. All joking aside, Dale’s work on the whole run has been fantastic.
I am a little disappointed with the ending of this book. Fair enough this book is a crime noir story, but still I would have liked to see some sort of conclusion. Instead, there is an ambiguity that serves only more darkness. Maybe I am too soft-hearted or maybe Summer has worked her magic on me (I am a sucker for a red-head after all). Either way, as a whole the story has been a very enjoyable rip, that even with the aforementioned disappointment, has managed to avoid a wipe-out.
Writing – 3 Stars
Art -3.5 stars
Colors – 4 stars
[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]
Item Code: APR161498
Author Profile
- I am a long time comic book fan, being first introduced to Batman in the mid to late 70's. This led to a appreciation of classic artists like Neal Adams and Jim Aparo. Moving through the decades that followed, I have a working knowledge of a huge raft of characters with a fondness for old school characters like JSA and The Shadow
Currently reading a slew of Bat Books, enjoying a mini Marvel revival, and the host of The Definative Crusade and Outside the Panels whilst also appearing on No-Prize Podcast on the Undercover Capes Podcast Network
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