Broken Frontier

Amongst all the event books, deaths and gimmicks, one book treks a bold new direction, adequacy. At least, that is what the cover of Kenny Keil’s anthology comic states. Inside is a different story. The reader will find several short comics that run the gamut on content while all being funny and more than merely satisfactory. Although, it may just be a case of under promising and over delivering.

The book is manic lunacy at its best. It is the kind of thing that knows its audience and laughs with them. Inside the pages of this comic are spoof ads picking on the order forms of yesteryear, the get rich quick scheme or two, the promise to beat bullies, and a hilarious spoof ad for a book called Space Raoul. What’s that you say, oh, that’s an actual book published by SLG? Hmmm...

There is also the skewering of everything comics. In fact, the book works best as a roast of the medium. Stan Lee is warped into Mork Finkleman. A hyperbole on the idea man who is part storyteller, part P.T. Barnum. Keil even manages to hint at the alliteration and self importance, but it’s all good fun.

The best of the longer pieces work at playing with the fans of comics. In "Read at Your Own Risk", a grumpy comic store owner tells the fate of a fan who became too obsessed with comics. All the while, there is a tongue in cheek reference to the proceedings that led to the comics code in the Fifties. Don’t let those funny books fool you, collecting will ruin your life all while you become fat and unpleasant to people.

The best piece in the whole book takes the whole idea of Kick Ass and places it into the real world. Where Twilight Guardian made the real superhero a mundane story of loneliness and dispair and Millar’s work makes it exciting and dangerous, Kiel’s "The Red Atom" shows what the avid comic reader is more likely to do in pursuit of the dream. Procrastination, excuse, and meddlesome parents become comedic fodder keeping the bad guys in action.

There is the bizarre twist on heroic romance in Ray Gunn’s adventure "Love on the Rocks" and the zany interview of a zombie in "Corporate Zombie". Through it all, the author shows a unique ability to look at the medium he is working in and make it funny. He doesn’t take the cheap or easy way, but uses the stereotypes to create comedy. It is what every parody wants to be, subtle and obvious at the same time. It is no easy feat to pull off.

The art shows even more talent. Sure, the whole book is done with an exaggerated line bordering caricature style cartooning, but here and there are references to more polished Silver Age books and more modern computer assisted strips. It further cements the idea that Keil is not just a fan having fun at his hobby’s expense, but a student steeped in the lore of his subject. There is a sense of history that comes through not just in his line, but in his choices of coloring. Like the stories, the art morphs making each story a unique piece of its own. One could easily assume that there are different artists and writers at work here.

Comics aren’t always as fun as this one. With five plus stories and lots of interstitial entertainment, the claim that "Just 395" cents being merely "a pittance" on the cover rings true. If Marvel made half their comics as entertaining as this one, people would be a lot less concerned with the coming price hike.