TALES FROM SHOCK CITY

By: Tony Whitt
Date: Friday, December 07, 2001

Last week, when reviewing Gilbert Hernandez's latest effort GRIP: THE STRANGE WORLD OF MEN, I bemoaned the fact that the artwork simply didn't look the same in color as it did in his customary black and white. After reading TALES FROM SHOCK CITY, I have to amend that opinion: Gilbert Hernandez's work looks great in colorso long as it's the right kind of color.

For those of us who felt LOVE AND ROCKETS was at its best when it still mixed retro science fiction and romance and before it started getting more realisticif such a word could ever be applied to L&RTALES FROM SHOCK CITY is a tasty treat, even though it has nothing to do with L&R apart from its creators. Three of these stories first appeared in MR. X COMICS way back in 1984, while the " exciting new adventure" promised here appears to be one that was never finished from that time period. It doesn't matter, thoughall four stories have that sleek punk edge that defined earlier work in classic stories like "BEM" and other L&R jewels. Those reading this all-too-brief comic looking for hard science fiction will be disappointed, as the book is far more a collection of crime talesand one tale of the avant garde art worldtold against a science fiction background. Imagine FUTURAMA without the cheesy humor and with a lot more cursing.

"The Vultures, The Maggots, The Ants" is the standout story here. The Vultures are two ex-wives of a guy named Glover, who's come to a nasty end. The wives have come to collect certain body parts that will help them get into his lab to steal a brain chip that will do away with the need for recreational drugs. Sound complicated? Nah, not at all. It's the sort of story that has "romp" written all over it, as is the fun these two brothers had writing it. "Sad Mas Que Rad, Eh?" is another fun tale about a set of double- and triple-crosses involving secret agents pretending to be molls and criminals pretending to be secret agents. I think. Like I said, there's a lot of double- and triple-crossing here. This story in particular has a retro-EC-sci-fi-comic style that's irresistible. "A Tale of Neutropolis (a.k.a. 'Shock City')" is the story of two artists who hate each other but can't quite get enough of one anotheruntil one decides to make the ultimate artistic statement. The only piece here that may not completely satisfy is the three-page "brief tour" piece, where Gilbert's delectable images carry the story all by themselves.


I mentioned how well that artwork is served by the color, and Chris Bell's colors are exactly the right kind. It's the same kind of work we see each month in DETECTIVE COMICS, where one color predominates, and it's really the only sort of color scheme that makes Gilbert's work shine beautifully. GRIP's color work sadly pales in comparison, if only because there's no attempt at realism in this book. It's a fond bit of folly, and you'll be sorry it lasted for so short a time when you've reached the last page.

TALES FROM SHOCK CITY

Grade: A-

Issue: N/A

Author(s): Mario Hernandez, Gilbert Hernandez

Publisher: Fantagraphics Books

Price: $3.95