Buck #1 review

Written by Stephen Lindsay with art by Danny Kelly, this is the first in a four part series.

The tropes that Lindsay uses, and has a lot of fun with, should be familiar to anyone who has ever watched a moster movie like Jaws, Tremors or Lake Placid. You've got your stoic sheriff, his cocky sidekick, perfect daughter and a bit of a love interest for him too.

It's a testament to the writing that these characters, rather than being instantly annoying in their familiarity, are immediatle likeable. Likeable to the point that I was begging the sheriff to just ask out the waitress who obviously fancies him...

But, I hear you ask, you mentioned monsters! Where are the monsters!

Well it's in the title! What we're dealing with here is your classic giant monster- this time it's, as the title suggests, a buck. And from the brief glimpses we get of him, he's a big one!

I must confess to being taken aback momentarily by the art when I first opened the book. It has a rough edge to it that does not make it instantly attractive the way smooth lined art is. However, it only takes a few panels to get into it, and the art reveals itself to be both clever and subtle, with Kelly drawing some nice performances from the characters.

There's not a great deal of violence in this first issue, but when it arrives, it does so in a glorious over the top fashion- with swathes of red drenching the black and white panels and in some cases flowing outside the panel borders.

This is an accomplished and interesting first part and we thoroughly recommend you look out for it in your local comic shop. We'll certainly be keeping an eye out for the rest of it.