Writer: Eric Powell, Kyle Hotz
Colorist: Dave StewartWith nothing in life to lose, Buzzard takes a bounty from the desperate villagers and heads into battle against a monstrous forest god, culminating in a confrontation that no one would see coming.
Eric Powell, multiple Eisner Award winning creator of The Goon, gives one of his most beloved and mysterious characters, Buzzard, his own highly anticipated three issue miniseries.
Check behind the cut for my thoughts on the final issue!
In the final issue of the book, Buzzard and his small crew have finally reached the point of their mission: the tower. Of course, Buzzard has to go in alone and hopefully meet his final fate. But can this god creature really kill him? What is in store for Buzzard and his quest for release?
As it turns out, death is much more of a central theme to the book than I expected. Buzzard is a character recognized as death throughout the Goon books and this book, despite his denial to the role. He can’t escape the fact that it follows him at every turn, though, and thus the book becomes more on a meditation on dying rather than a story about Buzzard. It’s much more than that. Throughout the second and third issue, Buzzard clearly became Powell offering fans a way to look at how we leave this world, in a way that makes it almost seem peaceful and less terrifying. Buzzard is an ancient character, longing for the afterlife, and through his central narration we’re given a different look at the character in a way that almost seems like a tragic hero more than anything else.
Powell does a great job with the tale. Many people have been clamoring for a Buzzard mini, but as much as I like the character I didn’t think he’d be able to stand on his own. Clearly I’m wrong. In fact, the mini actually feels rather tailored to people who have never read the Goon, because it has an entirely different feel to it. The Goon is this quirky and odd dark comedy, whereas Buzzard alone is a dark tale with little to no humor at all. In fact, it’s quite sad. It has a completely different feel to it, and that only feels appropriate. I’m not sure what Powell used to channel this tale, but it certainly paid off.
The art aspect of it is great as well. I love Powell’s art, as he manages to create these perfectly fitting worlds to his eccentric characters. While I prefer the look and feel of the Goon overall, I do really enjoy the way that he creates this dark wasteland for Buzzard and the boy to travel across. Even the final monstrosity looks great, and it almost looks like Powell took a brief page from fellow Dark Horse-ian Mike Mignola’s book in design. While we don’t get any kind of an “epic showdown,” the brief look that we do get is slick, and it ultimately ends up making sense that we don’t see anything. It’s rather poetic.
Buzzard ended up being much better of a stand alone than I had originally presumed. Dark and dreary but with a final message to it, the comic manages to stand on it’s own from the Goon crowd in what could really work for Powell if he chooses to come back to the character in solo form again. While I think that repeated minis might be overdoing it, Buzzard should definitely come back for another solo adventure at least once more, if only so Powell can let his darker and more metaphorical side run outside a bit more.
Final Verdict: 7.9 – Buy
