Final Boss #1 // Review
Tommy Brazen is waking-up in pain. It's OK, though he's used to it. He's not exactly on a line of work that doesn't involve a whole lot of pain. But usually he's the one who's giving out more of it than taking it. He's a thug. Hired muscle. He's also a prize fighter. Then he's about to get the opportunity of a lifetime in. Final Boss #1. Writer Tyler Kirkham launches into big and stupid action with the aid of fellow artist David Miller and colorist Ifansyah Noor the rough and tumble brutality is not without its charm but it’s pretty slly stuff straight through.
He's not just making the money for himself. He's making the money to solve a mystery. What exactly happened to his grandfather? There's some question as to what it was that he was talking about regarding God's and power and that sort of thing. Man served in World War II. Evidently ran into something big. And now Brazen is working to figure out what it is. Doesn't necessarily expect to make such a big step forward on that front when he confronts the biggest guy on the fight ircuit: the champion known as Chain Pain. He’s practically a foot tallerr than Tommy with 123 more pounds of muscle. What’s the worst that could happen?
It’s big. It’s dumb. It’s stupid. And for the right kind of person, that’s going to be a lot of fun. But it’s not terribly original. Kirkham sketches out a story in broad and ragged strokes. Really isn't any settled team in this one. There doesn't really need to be, though. It's all aggression and adrenaline and percussion. The story charge its way across the issue from page to beach until it reaches it's inevitable conclusion. No need for finesse. No need for any sense of nuance. The problem is that it doesn't really feel interesting beyond the basic power of violent aggression. There's nothing riding below the surface of it. No hidden interest to engage the reader beyond the surface level.
It's kind of nice to see this kind of brutality on the page, though. It's kind of nice to get a look at big, aggressive bursts of action as they slam into the page. Did all sweeps through with the kind of force they could be seen across a room. Graphically it works quite well. But there isn't enough on the page to engage the visuals beyond the musclebound humbling that's going on in the foreground. Noor’s colors go a long way towards making it all digestible. There's some level of depth and texture that Noor is able to lend onto the page that feels suitably enjoyable.
It's kind of cool to see the stats of the opponents as they enter the ring. The game like quality of the conflict is a pleasant, little gimmick that lends some novelty to what could otherwise be a thoroughly forgettable opening is you to likely tedious series of slugfests. The real challenge is going to lie in amplifying the intensity of everything incrementally. Theoretically this could get into absurdly surreal over the top territory, and it would be just adorable. Every time Brazen wins, he gets a little bit more powerful. It would be fun to see him become a city taping Godmonster by the end of the series. That could be a fun turn for for everything. Otherwise it's just kind of pointless.
