RADAR // 1.30.03

by the SAVANT Staff

ON OUR RADAR

HSU AND CHAN #1
Written and drawn by Jeremy Scott
US $2.95
Published by Slave Labor Graphics
www.ape-law.com/evilmonkey

This made me laugh so much I cried. Seriously, I caught a look at myself in the mirror and water was streaming down my face like a manga character. My throat hurt, my eyes stung and I was laughing like a crazy person for a good ten minutes.

A little context. Hsu and Chan Tanaka are brothers, computer game designers and have the sort of low boredom threshold and tiny attention span that puts them in the genius, evil or otherwise, section of the pool. Aided by their hamster, Gila Mobster (It's really safest not to ask. Imagine Leslie 1.0 from LIBERTY MEADOWS with a hat) and Arnie who looks like Sonic the Hedgehog and wonders why women keep staring at him.

And they have adventures. Adventures which in one single issue involve ancient prophecies, cockroach based paranoia, dragons, a really lousy date and a night on the town. It's all delivered with the sort of freewheeling charm that Mel Blanc's cartoons achieve, crossed with the sort of casual violence that categories Evan Dorkin's work. Hsu and Chan really have no time for anyone other than them AT ALL and if you're not with them, you're either a problem (In which case you'll be destroyed) or boring (In which case you're caught in the crossfire).

However, were this simply the every day story of two casually violent computer game designers it would simply be a really odd, vaguely rubbish superhero comic. Instead, Hsu and Chan are both cheerfully amoral and more than a bit rubbish. Their first big faceoff with their arch-foes includes the line:

'We have skills now! Jujitsu! Karate! Access to lawyers!'

As a result, the comedy becomes more fish out of water than pratfall and frying pan, with these two slightly odd guys dealing with the plot of a particularly incomprehensible kung-fu movie, a near date AND a night on the town all with a distinterested worldview that only serves to make things funnier.

Make no mistake, the script here is absolutely red hot, with at least two laugh out loud moments per page and some fantastic one liners. However, it's only one half of a quality package, the black and white art simultaneously cartoony enough to fit the subject matter and detailed enough to mirror the boys' view of the world. It's simple, expressive and elegant art that doesn't just do the job, it makes the comic a good deal funnier.

HSU AND CHAN is the funniest thing I've read in months. It's astonishingly, relentlessly funny and should be read by as many people as possible. Buy it. That simple.

(Alasdair Stuart)

* * *

THE DARK AGE
'Five Minutes to Midnight'
'Parting the Veil'
'The Quiet Death'
Written by Travis G.Johnson
Drawn by Sam Hart
FREE
Published by Variance Press
www.travisgjohnson.com

There's a quote that I was reminded of all the way through these three issues, which I think is attributed to William Friedkin:

'True horror is seeing something approach.'

It's absolutely true, especially of this series of previews for the upcoming series. They're small, and deliberately so, designed to do little more than give the readers a snapshot not only of the characters from the series but also the events that will drive it.

Without giving too much away, they run sequentially (roughly) from 'Midnight' to 'Death' each following the shockwave of an event as it travels around the world. In fifteen pages, Johnson and Hart manage to not only drive home the global nature of this event but also it's human cost. This is psychic horror by way of 24, with a sequence showing the effect events are having on the CIA's psychic division being a particularly chilling standout.

However, it's impossible to assess this as simply a story. Johnson and Hart are also using it as an outreach tool, giving it away free to retailers and readers in an attempt to build interest in the series. It's a good plan (Free is the best selling point there is for a lot of people) and these previews are sharp looking little comics. Hart's artwork is character driven and expressive, and the simple effects used to protray the event are both effective and chilling. As an added bonus, the scripts for each preview have been included. As an avowed script junkie this is perfect for me, and Johnson's scripts are interesting, easy to read and very detailed.

This has the potential to be an interesting and different, for once, horror series. Johnson and Hart haven't just worked hard they've made it as easy as possible for the reader to get into the story. And make no mistake, this looks like a good story and one where I desperately want to know what happens next. That should be recommendation enough.

(Alasdair Stuart)