6 Gun Gorilla Mini-Series Review

Title:	Six Gun Gorilla
Contributors:	Simon Spurrier Jeff Stokely
Publisher:	Boom! Studios
Issue #:	1 - 6
Year:	2013
Pages:	32 Pages
Age Rating:	16+ (Violence, Gore, Adult Themes)
Story Grade:	A+
Art Grade:	A+

Six-Gun Gorilla is not what one what would expect from a book given this type of title. It is truly a unique book with a quality story (that is oldly part sci-fi, part western, part war story, part action film and a little bit comedy), mixed with deep, rich characters and high quality art covered by a kitschy, almost internet meme-based, title and book cover. But, if you haven't done so already, get over yourself and pick up this entire series and read it, you likely won't be disappointed.

I happened across this title by chance. My LCS contacted me asking me if I was the guy that ordered the entire series. I responded no, but that if he couldn't find the person who did, he [my LCS owner] could toss them in my box because I didn't want my LCS to eat the order. That can happen and it isn't good for business... plus it can earn some points for me when I do want to order something down the road.

Well the guy was never found and the books ended up in my box. So I came home with a six book mini-series that I would have never bought otherwise. Too bad for the guy that ordered them... and yay for me.

The story is based on this premise: Earth is at war with the settlers on another planet over the price of crops which are used to feed people back on Earth because farmland is in short supply and over population is rampant. But in the case of this war, the troop recruits are volunteers who have nothing to lose, meaning they are on death row, suicidally-depressed or terminally ill. They are equipped with a transmitting camera implanted in their eye and their heroic, or not so heroic death as it may be is televised for the people on Earth to see. The reward for the volunteers is that their beneficiaries are paid handsomely upon their death by the network televising the event. And of course the network is paid even more handsomely through advertising revenues. So the more wild the death ride, the more viewers that watch. The more viewers that watch the more ad revenues that come in. It is a vicious cycle we see today.

Once the new batch of recruits are dropped off they are matched up with commanders and hot the ground running. The story begins to focus on one recruit specifically named Blue-3245, as real names are not allowed. Blue quickly sets himself apart from the other recruits and finds himself in a unique situation, and that is when things get interesting, not only for the television audience back on earth, or the network or the advertising sponsors, but for the reader as well. Because real quick it becomes clear that this planet is quite different than Earth and the reader is treated with cool concepts like red landscapes, high-noon blaze-time, blaze quakes, giant turtles pulling train cars and yes, a two-six-gun toting gorilla plus many other strange and unique wonders plus some things familiar.

As the story progresses through the issues it gets more complex, yet remains east enough to follow, exposing more of the underbelly of the conflict between the worlds. Conspiracies abound as the real driver of and the true source of long continuation of the war is exposed. We also get to see some differences between how the two world's societies are governed, such as, on Earth, soldiers are volunteers, generally with nothing left to lose, while on the other world, children are taken, forcibly, and groomed into soldiers.

It is this level of depth that makes this comic series so very enjoyable and this comic series does a great job of digging deep rather than just staying on the surface like so many others simply do. It points out so many flaws and corruptions in not only our own social and political systems but points to what we would be facing in out own future but does it in an entertaining way as to not be a political soapbox preaching at the reader which is refreshing and makes the reader want to stick around for the next panel.

The artwork is fantastically done giving depth and action without muddling up the pages with unneeded nonsense. In a word, "Stunning." That is what I would used to describe each and every panel contained within the six book series. Stunning.

I graded this series a solid A+. The story is fresh, eerie and fun all at the same time. The artwork is a vivid wondrous dreamscape from the first to the last page of the series that will stick with you long after you put it down. Again, I say, if you haven't done so, do yourself a favor, pick this series up. If you are fan of either sci-fi, fantasy, westerns, war, action or comedy stories, this series has something in it for you.

Until next time... If'n there's fewer'n twelve... shoot first.