Who needs a quick hit of hilarity? Because you’re liable to get at least a few chuckles out of the ten pages that make up this first issue of “Knuckleheads”. Published by Monkeybrain, and centering on a dudebro superhero and his long-suffering roomie, you’d better believe there’s multum in parvo going on here.
Written by Brian Winkeler
Illustrated by Robert Wilson IVTrevor K. Trevinski and Lance Powers were ordinary roommates until aliens visited a massively hungover Trev and gave him The Crystal Fist – a cosmic weapon that he can only seem to harness using videogame controllers and he only uses to cheat on video games and steal cable. But when a monster attacks the city, Trev must overcome his instinctive laziness and Lance’s bromantic nagging to save the day.
The solicit gives it to you pretty straight, so I won’t labour the plot too much – except to say that it escalates quickly, and there’s pizza along the way. And while this isn’t the first story ever to feature a slacker protagonist with amazing powers, the way it captures the laidback atmosphere before stepping into mayhem mode is pretty impressive. In a veryveryshort comic book, pacing is key, and Winkeler gets this story moving at just the right speed.
Winkeler also writes great dialogue, quickly getting at the heart of the nagging and scowling and yes, thoroughly bromantic relationship between Trevor and Lance. Their exchanges are funny without feeling out-of-step with the forward motion of the plot, and as a third character joins the mix, the dynamic shifts but the humour never flags.
Meanwhile, Robert Wilson’s art is clear and concise, and great at getting across both the swagger and slouch of these two characters’ personalities. Trevor’s costume alone is something pretty novel – a fuzzy robe paired with ski goggles? – and Lance is a great, clean-cut foil. The art also provides a couple extra punchlines of its own – some of the reactive expressions, particularly the Pizza Guy’s, are outright scene-stealers – and all the while, Wilson’s clean visual storytelling keeps the zippy plot coherent and lightweight.
Jordan Boyd’s colours are really eccentric – ranging from the pink of Trevor’s fuzzy robe to turquoise glowing crystals to a bright green background when Trevor’s power’s kick into gear – but they get at the Foul Bachelor Frog tone of the thing while still following a solid and interesting scheme. The different kinds of light – whether it be twilight, dirty lamp light, or of the glowing knuckle-crystal variety – are also beautifully rendered.
Similarly, Thomas Mauer’s lettering is appreciably “different”, making use of an unusual and slightly jagged style while still being clear and effective in terms of balloon placement and mighty expressive in terms of SFX.
Overall, this is a beautifully executed, bite-sized bit of slacker-superhero fun – and it’ll only set you back 99 cents. Plus, it’s slated as the first in the a 12-part series, so we’ve got plenty to look forward to from this punchy title.
Final Verdict: 8.0 – Buy
