Monday 9 November 2015

Comics #1: CHEW // To read or not to read?

 

Written and lettered by: John Layman
Drawn and coloured by: Rob Guillory
Publisher: Image Comics
Publication year: 2009
Number of issues: 60

In the United States of America, the death of 23 million due to what the government claimed as a 'avian flu' caused chicken and all other bird meats to be outlawed. Tony Chu, a newly-hired FDA agent is in the centre of it all. 
Now Tony Chu isn't just any agent. He was brought in by the Special Crimes Division of the FDA for one specific reason. Tony Chu is a cibopath. What is a cibopath I hear you ask? It means that Chu gets psychic impressions form whatever he eats. Be it apple, (where he can visualise the tree it grew on, the pesticides used on the crop and when it harvested) a hamburger (well...) or the decomposing body of a murder victim. (have you lost your mind yet?)
This is his story, amongst many others.

EXCUSE ME BUT WHAT DID I JUST READ.


PROS:


ART
The art in CHEW is perfect. Absolutely perfect.  Now, CHEW is a comic in which it's main character ingests the decomposing body parts of  murder victims and the like in the name of justice. Needless to say, it's a pretty gross comic. The settings in this book all look pretty dingy and the characters are drawn just shy of disgusting to prance hand in hand with the premise of the entire comic. Nothing is polished and shiny. It's grubby and unsavoury and dare I say nauseating BUT I LOVE IT. IT'S FANTABULOUS I SAY. Is that a word? It is now. 




SETTING
The setting. OH MY GOD THE SETTING IS SO CLEVER YOU GUYS. I've read some pretty unique stuff in the past but the setting in CHEW is definitely up there. I mean, it's only set in a time when the US government has just OUTLAWED CHICKEN. The black market stocks up in chicken now folks, and there's a protesting party called the E.G.G. BUT WAIT! John Layman has also created tons of different food-related 'talents' and slowly introduces characters that possess them. For example, Tony Chu who's a cibopath, Amelia Mintz who's a saboscrivner, and SO MANY MORE GUYS OH MY GOSH. In terms of setting, the creativity of this comic is incredible. Originality wins! 

CHARACTERS
(main character and favs)

Tony Chu: Unlikable at first but is ultimately the bomb.
Tony Chu is pretty damn bitter about having to eat his way to justice, and to be honest, who wouldn't? That makes him pretty snappy throughout the comic, which is something you quickly get used to. Also, his romantic tendencies contributed to quite a few eye rolls. BUT! He's awesome guys. I mean seriously. The way he closes case after case (albeit gruesomely, don't get me wrong) is pretty darn cool. 



John Colby: A bionic badass (yes please)
I'm just gonna come right out and say it: I love John Colby's character. He's one of those bad ass cops that demands everything and somehow gets away with being an asshole to absolutely everyone but still has a soft spot for his friends. Yep. Also (spoiler guys) is it me or did something happen between him and Applebee? Whoever read the series, PLEASE JUST LET ME KNOW IT'S KILLING ME. 


CONS:

DEVELOPMENT
The story is a little slow in volume 1, just a little. It's pretty confusing too. I felt like so many cases were being introduced that I was being pulled in a million different directions and was wondering where the main storyline ran off to. I felt like the individual cases didn't get much attention, and each were closed before they properly began. But, it gets way better from volume 2 onwards, the cases condense into one main storyline and it makes a lot more sense. so this is just a teensy problem!



SO, TO READ OR NOT TO READ?
Uh, excuse me? GO. BOOKSTORE. NOW.
(get through the first volume and you'll be hooked, trust me.)


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Have any of you guys read CHEW? What did you think of it? And if you haven't read it, do you plan to? (pfft, of course you plan to, why wouldn't you?) 
TALK TO ME IN THE COMMENTS!
I do reply! (with far too much blubbering and overdone enthusiasm mind you)




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